Check your change, especially two-euro coins, Spain's Guardia Civil warns

Spain's Guardia Civil is warning people to check any two-euro coins they are given, because there is a fraud at present where these are being substituted by a Turkish lira coin which is a similar size and colour.

To tell the difference, look at the images below. On the back of the Turkish lira is the founder and first president of the Republic of Turkey, Mustafá Kemal Atatürk, and the face of the coin shows the value, the year, the half-moon and the star (symbols of the Turkish flag) together with other decorative elements.

A two-euro coin, on the other hand, will clearly state its value in euros, and those minted in Spain will have an image of someone or something relevant, such as the king, Felipe VI; the former king, Juan Carlos I, Miguel de Cervantes or the cathedral in Santiago de Compostela, for example.

This is not the first time the Guardia Civil has issued a warning of this type. Earlier this year there was a similar fraud involving one-euro coins which were being substituted by foreign coins with a much lower value.