Not only do you have to be wary of customers trying to pass off phony currency you have to make sure your employees are using a proper counterfeit detecting marker as well.

Raleigh, N.C. — A former Kangaroo gas station employee faces charges of conspiracy after police said he accepted 20 counterfeit bills.

Police
said on Aug. 19, Timothy White, 19, of 315 Wrenn Street in Apex,
accepted the $100 bills and pretended to use a counterfeit marking pen
when he checked the bills, according to a warrant released by the
Raleigh Police Department.

White is accused of conspiring with unknown persons to commit the felony of obtaining property by false pretense.

Counterfeit $1 and $5 bills are circulating through businesses in Humboldt County, and investigators with the Eureka Police Department are working to sort out who’s passing the bucks unwittingly and who is to blame.

”They’re getting passed left and right,” said Sgt. Patrick O’Neill, the lead investigator in the case. “The hurdle is tracking down the people who are passing these and then finding out what their involvement is.”

Thousands of counterfeit dollars have been identified since a rash of small bills began circulating in May, but Eureka Police Department spokesman Murl Harpham said their use has increased over the past two weeks.

O’Neill estimates only $300 to $400 in faux bucks have actually been spent and reported, but considering the small denominations used, that’s around 100 counterfeit bills lining Eureka businesses’ tills.

Most of the bills have been spent at gas stations and convenience stores, where large bills are often checked using marking pens that detect forged money. However, O’Neill said cashiers often do not use the pen on $1 and $5 bills.

”Often the pen isn’t used on small bills, but it reacts the same way,” O’Neill said.

No suspects have been arrested, O’Neill said.

”At this time we don’t have anything solid to go off of. We have identified people who are involved in the passing, but is it someone who got it in change, or
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somebody who’s actually involved in it?”

Last week, authorities spoke with a transient woman who was carrying around $4,000 in counterfeit $5 bills, O’Neill said.

According to Harpham, the woman told police she found the bills in a Dumpster, and later led them to the site, which was located behind an apartment occupied by a person authorities previously questioned for allegedly passing counterfeit bills.

”We’re taking the woman’s word for it they came out of the Dumpster,” Harpham said.

O’Neill said he isn’t certain how the bills are being made, as there are a variety of methods that can be used to forge a dollar. But the bills have been printed on ordinary copy paper, “or something similar,” O’Neill said.

”The paper feels different,” he said. “It appears slightly different, too.”

According to a 2006 report from the U.S. Department of the Treasury, about one in every 10,000 U.S. notes is counterfeit.

Many of the $5 bills found in Humboldt County have a serial number of FL51355473A. The $1 bills have been observed with the following serial numbers: L59213375L, L84466701G, H60622385B, L27228448A.

O’Neill said anyone who finds a bill or has information about the case should notify the Eureka Police Department at 441-4300.

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Take the 10 seconds and test each and every bill with a counterfeit detection method, or say goodbye to your hard earned money. Don’t learn the hard way like this guy did.

COLUMBIA, Tenn. – A counterfeiter has set his sights on Columbia.

He’s struck more than 20 times in the last two weeks.

If a clerk collects a counterfeit $20 bill there’s a good chance that bill is accidentally passed on to the next customer.

Police want business owners, their employees and customers to take a hard look at their money.

“I was busy. I got a line right beside me and I needed to finish it very fast,” said Mike Hanna, who owns a store.

Twice in the past two days, busy brought in the bucks.  But the $100 and the $20 bills weren’t worth the paper they were written on.

“It’s really bad to find something like this,” he said. “To find people who try to make some fake money.”

Hanna found out the money was counterfeit when the bank reported the bills to Columbia police.

“It looks very real for me. You can not say it’s fake or not fake. You have to check it with a pen,” he said.

Hanna would have checked the bills with a counterfeit pen but his customers were lined up.

Investigators said that’s the distraction the crook needed.

“That’s hard for me to check everything. Gonna be very bad for my business. People are gonna be late in the line,” he said.

In customer David Walls’ mind, counterfeiting is no different than shoplifting.

“I mean, I do a lot of work on the side you know stuff and if I got paid with counterfeit money, I wouldn’t know where it came from,” he said. “But I’ll tell you what. I’d be going back to see them for sure.”

“I hope the police can catch these people. Gonna find out where he’s at,” he said. “How’s he do this stuff? Because it really it looks real.”

The store clerk said the counterfeit bills had one unique feature. He said they looked faded as if they’d been washed in the laundry.

Police are analyzing the bills for any possible fingerprints or DNA to try and catch the counterfeiter.

Police said the phony money has been printed as $100, $50 and $20 bills.

In
Columbia, counterfeit money is on the rise. Over the past two weeks,
police discovered more than 20 cases of fake money. The bills are
mainly showing up at local businesses. Police want workers to be sure
and check any money received carefully by using a specially-designed
marker. They’re asking people to be careful and don’t accept money from
strangers. The bills currently circulating are hundreds, twenties,
fifties and tens. Investigators said they’re pursuing a number of leads
at this time.

Most people wouldn’t think counterfeiting is a big problem but these individuals would be wrong. On average, $40 million dollars in counterfeit currency is circulated annually in the United States alone. Although this is roughly only 1% of overall currency circulation, counterfeit money poses a great threat to commerce as well as small and large businesses.

Many victims find themselves out money that can not be replaced, which, once again, can hurt everyone, even consumers. Although the government has allowed watermarks and UV security strips to be introduced to cut down on incidences of counterfeiting, an elite few still manage to print and circulate fake bills.

When we add the fact that current technology exists to make counterfeiting even easier, this makes the potential threat to out nation’s economy even greater. All is not lost however, as we can use technology to our advantage in our fight against the proliferation of counterfeit green.

UV Machines and Counterfeit Detection

The most common form of counterfeit money detection is done via the use of UV machines. Some come in consumer grade hand held varieties as small as a pen. Others are found in money counting machines that are utilized by numerous businesses.

Both consumer and business grade UV devices have a backlight that can reveal the security strip that is currently placed in all US money. It also works by detecting the difference between wood-based paper and the fiber-based paper that real money is printed on. UV detection works especially well with crude counterfeiters who simply photocopy the bills onto regular paper or use fake watermarks or symbols.

UV money counters even sound an alarm when such money is found alerting individuals to the bill’s existence.

UV Detection Versus Counterfeit Money detectors

While a UV counterfeit detection light looks for imperfection in the inking, watermarks, or paper grades, other machines, like magnetic or MG detection devices can find magnetic properties that only exist in legitimate dollar bills. In other words, if the bill is lacking these elements, it is very much a fake.

Is one method better than the other?

Not exactly, in fact, some money counting machines may combine both UV and MG counterfeit detection technology. If an individual were going to make a choice, it would be purely based on preference as both appear to be able to detect fake bills reliably.

Other methods

Chemical detection pens, or CD’s, are pens made with a patented formula that can test the authenticity of currency paper. Because most real dollar bills are made with a pulpy fiber, the pen can detect those fibers on contact. To use properly, all one would have to do is to make a mark on the bill in question. A light or clear mark will indicate the dollar is genuine. If the mark turns dark or gray, then there is a very good chance it is counterfeit.

Another common method of counterfeit money detection is the use of the Color Shifting Reflector. This particular device will allow you to see if the ink on the lower right hand corner of the front of the bill. The metal reflector will show a change of color depending on the viewing angle. The color may change from green to black or from black to green. Legitimate money has this color element and can be seen by the naked eye too.

Again, some bill counters will have a couple or all of these detection items within them. Of course, the good old fashioned hands on method of touch and feel are still a good way to separate fakes from the real thing. Still, if a company or even an individual wants to keep on the lookout for bogus dollar bills, it would certainly be to their advantage to look into the various counterfeit money detectors on the market today.

There is a reason he is a detective and you are not.

The Clovis Police Department has seen an influx in counterfeit bills in the area over the past two weeks, according to Detective Sonny Smith.

Smith said the bills are $50 and $100 bills. He said the counterfeiters are purchasing small amounts of goods and receiving legitimate cash back.

One warrant has been issued in the case thus far.

Smith suggested that all businesses take a moment to inspect any bills received by holding them up to the light or using a counterfeit marker.

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Then don’t use a counterfeit detecting pen, because as Ms. Ginard from Dunkin Donuts says “The counterfeit money makes for nice decoration on the wall,” she said. “That’s pretty much all it’s good for.”

Don’t try paying for that coffee and donuts with a $50 or $100 bill.

Dunkin’ Donuts probably won’t accept it.

Several Dunkin’ Donuts franchises in New Bedford are not accepting the larger bills because of recent counterfeit money that customers have used to pay for their morning cup of joe.

While police say they have not seen a recent uptick in counterfeit money, Dunkin’ Donuts is taking precautions.

“In general, if we can avoid it, we’re not taking the larger bills” said Petra Ginard, area manager for Dunkin’ Donuts.

Within the past month, Ms. Ginard said Dunkin’ Donuts employees have received at least three counterfeit $50 bills. She said a customer at the Brock Avenue store used a fake $20 bill to pay for his items.

The fake bills have not been concentrated in one area, Ms. Ginard said

“We’ve seen this all over New Bedford and all over the area,” Ms. Ginard said.

Fairhaven Police Chief Gary F. Souza said counterfeit money has been a recurring problem locally but he has not seen a recent increase.

“It still remains a problem and a matter of concern to us,” Chief Souza said.

Meanwhile, New Bedford police spokesman Lt. Jeffrey P. Silva said it has typically not been a big issue in the city.

“The best thing a business can do if they think they’ve taken in a counterfeit bill is to test it with a special marker or call the police,” he said.

“Also important is to obtain accurate information on the suspect who tries passing the counterfeit money so investigators have somewhere to start.”

If someone tries passing a suspected fake bill, Dunkin’ Donuts employees are told to simply give it back.

“We advise the workers not to get into a fight with the customers,” Ms. Ginard said.

Unless a manager is on duty and authorizes the transaction, customers who try to pay with $50 or $100 bills are told they have to use smaller denominations or credit cards.

Signs have even been posted on several stores’ drive-thru windows to inform people of the new policy.

“Some customers have been OK with it but some have complained,” Ms. Ginard said.

While taking the problem seriously, she found opportunity to crack a joke about the situation.

“The counterfeit money makes for nice decoration on the wall,” she said. “That’s pretty much all it’s good for.”

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A town in the UK has decided to print its own currency.

The town of Lewes in East Sussex has printed £10,000 of its own pound notes to be used as an alternative to sterling.

The
idea is to boost the local economy by keeping cash circulating among
local traders and suppliers rather than leaking out to the wider
economy via national chains.

While not a bad idea if enough local establishments agree to accept the currency it may lead to counterfeiters having a field day.

And copying the notes would not be easy for any would-be fraudsters.
They are made from the same type of paper use by the Royal Mint and
have watermarks and UV-sensitive fibres for extra security.

So if you happen to live in Lewes and you choose to do business with the Lewes Pound you are in luck our UV detectors will do the trick as well as our Universal Counterfeit Detector Pen.

Read the whole story here.

A man from Lewiston got arrested last week on a felony charge for counterfeiting thousands of dollars.

LEWISTON – Since the start of spring, police and government agents have been investigating counterfeit money being passed around the city.

The investigation continued all summer, with Lewiston police and the U.S. Secret Service generating lead after lead to the origin of the funny money. As they investigated, more bogus bills turned up at local businesses.

Now, a local man is awaiting court action after he was charged with aggravated forgery, and police say more than $14,000 in bogus bills has been recovered.

Last week, 29-year-old Byron Smith of Montello Street was arrested on the felony charge. Police say Smith is responsible for thousands of dollars in counterfeit cash being distributed through local businesses.

Investigators said the fake bills were passed at corner stores, restaurants and coffee shops around the city.

They did not say what specific leads led to Smith as the primary suspect in the counterfeiting scheme. Police also implied that Smith may not have acted alone. The case remains under investigation and more arrests are likely, police said.

Smith has since posted bail and was freed from the Androscoggin County Jail in Auburn.
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