A recent surge in counterfeit money in the Nogales has area merchants looking closely at the greenbacks they accept from customers.

Officers from the Nogales Police Department confiscated the notes, which will be forwarded to the U. S. Treasury Department. NPD spokesman Lt. Octavio Gradillas said that no arrests have been made because the parties involved were unaware they were passing money that might be considered spurious.

“It’s not to the point where we feel it’s something specific that is going on, like someone is counterfeiting and passing bills out,” said Gradillas. He said that while the holidays are the usual times that his department sees surges in counterfeit bills, reports of two or three counterfeit bills discovered in a single day are not unheard of.

“We don’t have a specific lead as to where the bills are coming from, but most of them are being passed around by unsuspecting citizens of Mexico,” said Gradillas. He added that many of the businesses in Mexico don’t have the devices or expertise needed to detect counterfeit bills. As a result, counterfeit bills circulate and will be taken across the border by people unaware of what they have in their wallets. The bills end up with U.S. merchants who generally have better knowledge of how to detect phony money.

One device used by merchants is a marker that reacts to legitimate currency by turning the paper a yellowish-brown. If the merchant does not get that affect, or the paper turns black, it is highly likely that the bill is counterfeit.

If a marking pen is not available, a visual check may detect if the money is legitimate. U.S. currency has a security strip with the word of the denomination running through the center of the bill, as well as red and blue fibers that run through the bill. In addition, the newest bills contain a watermark picture that can be detected when held up to the light.

“You know some of these bills really are almost authentic, and if you don’t know what you’re looking for or have a marking pen you can be taken,” said Gradillas.

If it is counterfeit, the U.S. Treasury Department destroys the note and the person usually ends up losing the money - that is, unless they can find the person that originally gave it to them

Read the full article here