GreenMonster
02-04-2006, 11:36 AM
This is just a quick warning to all that handle money in the course of everyday business. This past week I caught a counterfeit $50 bill coming into my family's convenience store business. I quickly refused to accept the bill and proceeded to get tag # and description of the vehicle and called the Police Department. The fake bill was a very good copy. It was printed off of a home computer printer after a real $50 bill was scanned in. The most disturbing part of this is that the bill fooled my "money pen" the specially designed marker that is supposed to detect counterfeit bills. Secret Service was called in after the 2 suspects were apprehended and their investigation determined the bill was indeed a fake and that the suspects had considerable more printed and ready to go back at their home. The suspects had successfully used several other bills in our community to gain small amounts of merchandise and large amounts of cash back. To describe the fake bill I would say it looks very good at first but the feel is very slick and the weight of the bill is very light much like a very worn $1 bill that has been washed several times. The feel of the bill is what tipped my suspicions and I held it up to a light to check for the security strip that is embedded into US currency. There was not a security strip and I handed it back to the lady. Just be aware that there is bad money circulating around right now and that the crooks have figured out a way around the "Money Pen" by spraying the fake bills with spray starch and hairspray. This is the combination that was sprayed on this particular bill according to the Secret Service investigation. Thanks for your time and I hope no one else gets put into the same situation.