So, should Northern Ireland just change its money now?

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£22 million in Northern Ireland notes has been stolen in the biggest armed robbery ever in Britain or Ireland. But how will the robbers launder the money? And should the British government just decide that Northern Irish notes are no longer legal tender, and give everyone two weeks to trade theirs for "real" money in the hopes of leaving the robbers with a lock-up full of worthless paper?

― accentmonkey (accentmonkey), Wednesday, 22 December 2004 17:26 (twenty-one years ago)

that's a silly idea.

― ken c (ken c), Wednesday, 22 December 2004 17:30 (twenty-one years ago)

go for it.

― mark grout (mark grout), Wednesday, 22 December 2004 17:31 (twenty-one years ago)

apparently they're planning to spend it all on yet more copies of Band Aid 20

― Frankenstein On Ice (blueski), Wednesday, 22 December 2004 17:31 (twenty-one years ago)

The crimes just keep on coming.

I do love the way all the experts on this robbery keep saying "they'll never be able to launder all that money", as if the gang is listening to a little radio somewhere saying "hear that Lefty? I told you we wouldn't get away with it!"

― accentmonkey (accentmonkey), Wednesday, 22 December 2004 17:34 (twenty-one years ago)

how many casinos are there in northern ireland?

― ken c (ken c), Wednesday, 22 December 2004 17:37 (twenty-one years ago)

Yeah, not many. It's grim up north.

― accentmonkey (accentmonkey), Wednesday, 22 December 2004 17:50 (twenty-one years ago)

The last time I was in Belfast they were using pounds sterling. Has that changed?

― andy, Wednesday, 22 December 2004 18:03 (twenty-one years ago)

No, they use sterling, but they can print their own money, so you might get English notes, or you might get Northern Irish notes. It's really annoying if you're in London trying to pay for things with Northern Irish notes and the shopkeeper hasn't seen them before. I've heard stories of shopkeepers and cabbies refusing to take them.

― accentmonkey (accentmonkey), Wednesday, 22 December 2004 18:11 (twenty-one years ago)

Practical as this is, the government simply saying "right, that's it, no more Northern Irish money, you can use the same notes as the mainland. You know, the ones with a big picture of the Queen on them" would cause political havoc.

― Matt DC (Matt DC), Wednesday, 22 December 2004 18:25 (twenty-one years ago)

there was a great expert on the radio today saying that by now they are probably all starting to double cross each other over the 4.5 million worth of launderable money they did get.

while I've never had nornie money refused by shopkeepers in Babylon, they do tend to look funny at it. Even in Heathrow airport, where you think they would be more used to that kind of thing.

― DV (dirtyvicar), Thursday, 23 December 2004 10:52 (twenty-one years ago)

they do that with scottish notes though, it's just an excuse to ANNOY people...

― CarsmileSteve (CarsmileSteve), Thursday, 23 December 2004 10:57 (twenty-one years ago)

alsoalso, good idea as this is, wouldn't it just allow every other person with dodgy money to launder it in the two week handover period?

― CarsmileSteve (CarsmileSteve), Thursday, 23 December 2004 10:58 (twenty-one years ago)

no, because they know most of the serial numbers of the dodgy money. also, anyone showing up with a big bag of money will immediately be subject to suspicion.

― DV (dirtyvicar), Thursday, 23 December 2004 11:39 (twenty-one years ago)

It'll be the large dollar sign on the bag that does it.

― Markelby (Mark C), Thursday, 23 December 2004 11:44 (twenty-one years ago)

Well, apparently I'm not the only one who thinks this is a good idea. They've been talking about it on the Pat Kenny show.

And it looks like the PSNI could be in trouble over this, as several people are now claiming to have reported a "suspicious" white van parked outside the bank on Monday, with people loading stuff into it. The police did nothing about it.

It's also great to hear ex-offenders on the radio saying that people shouldn't immediately assume a paramilitary involvement. I heard one guy claiming that there were many ODCs hanging around the country who could pull off something like this.

Sadly, no-one is referring to it as a blag or a caper. Nor has anyone opened a garage to find four Minis inside.

― accentmonkey (accentmonkey), Thursday, 23 December 2004 11:58 (twenty-one years ago)

I like the Irish. Never understood why they want to blow people up and argue over religion though. Seems a bit petty. Can't they just get with the modern age? But I like the Irish. Good bunch.

― Ceezer, Thursday, 23 December 2004 12:02 (twenty-one years ago)

"there was a great expert on the radio today"

That wouldn't be that fast-talking chap with the New York accent who really sounded like a 'money-laundering expert' would it?

― Japanese Giraffe (Japanese Giraffe), Thursday, 23 December 2004 14:09 (twenty-one years ago)

Yes! That's the guy. I think they heavily implied that he knew a lot about money laundering IF YOU SEE WHAT I MEAN before he went to work for Scotland Yard or somewhere like that.

The guy Pat Kenny had on today was from Norn Irn and he sounded very much like someone who might know someone who knows where the money is. But of course, he wouldn't be much value on radio if he didn't sound like that.

― accentmonkey (accentmonkey), Thursday, 23 December 2004 15:16 (twenty-one years ago)

Somewhere out there, a robber says "D'oh!".

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Thursday, 23 December 2004 15:21 (twenty-one years ago)

I like the Irish. Never understood why they want to blow people up and argue over religion though. Seems a bit petty. Can't they just get with the modern age? But I like the Irish. Good bunch.

I love the Brits. They're a bit thick, but you know where you stand with them.

― DV (dirtyvicar), Thursday, 23 December 2004 16:30 (twenty-one years ago)

And, there, in one post, we have the Irish Peace Conflict problems.

― 3underscore (___), Thursday, 23 December 2004 20:41 (twenty-one years ago)

Apparently about half the money was brand new, and virtually impossible for them to shift. Heh. But that's still a ton of usable paper cash they've got there.

the cops are now saying they missed the robbers by three minutes, having acted "promptly" on the tip off.

― stet (stet), Thursday, 23 December 2004 23:55 (twenty-one years ago)

I've had 3 "joke" text messages already about how Celtic have a sizeable budget for the January transfer window thanks to a fund raising exercise in Northern Ireland.

― Onimo (GerryNemo), Friday, 24 December 2004 00:52 (twenty-one years ago)

a lady gave me a northern irish £5, in my change, a few weeks ago.

I don't remember spending it but I no longer have it.

― RJG (RJG), Friday, 24 December 2004 00:55 (twenty-one years ago)

it was leprechauns.

― Hari Ashurst (Toaster), Friday, 24 December 2004 01:13 (twenty-one years ago)

aye, laddie
the pot-o-gold ran dry and they needed a wee bit to get it going again

― LORD OF ALL THINGS HOMOELECTRONIC (trigonalmayhem), Friday, 24 December 2004 01:21 (twenty-one years ago)

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