Police have arrested three men in Mong Kok for possessing counterfeit credit cards, and charged two of them for having false instruments.

Commercial Crime Bureau officers began surveillance of a counterfeit credit-card syndicate on Thursday. At about 3pm, they stopped a 26-year-old man at the junction of Fa Yuen Street and Prince Edward Road West and found five suspected counterfeit credit cards on him.

They also stopped two other men, aged 21 and 24, in a car on Nullah Road near Mong Kok Road. The 24-year-old had three suspected counterfeit cards.

Police then searched the 26-year-old man's flat in Tseung Kwan O where they seized a computer related to the case and some banking documents.

The crackdown has saved the potential loss of $190,000 for the credit-card industry.

The three, arrested for possessing false instruments and possessing equipment for making a false instrument, are being detained for further questioning.

The 24- and 26-year-old were later charged for possessing false instruments, while the 21-year-old was released on bail.