WORTHINGTON -- Were you shopping at Christopher and Banks in the Northland Mall on Saturday? If so, the Worthington Police Department might want to speak to you.
According to Public Safety Director Mike Cumiskey, an elderly woman used a $10 bill and $20 bill to make a purchase at the store, and the $10 bill was later discovered to be counterfeit. Cumiskey said he doesn't believe the woman counterfeited the bill, but probably received the bill as change somewhere else. Police would like to speak with the woman and find out where else she had been shopping.
Three counterfeit bills were found earlier this month -- at Arby's, Food N Fuel and a Casey's location on Oxford Street. Those bills were 10s and 50s.
On Thursday, a counterfeit $20 bill was discovered at Bank of the West, which had come from a Taco John's deposit. On Saturday, the latest counterfeit $10 bill was discovered by a Christopher and Banks employee.
Cumiskey said most of the counterfeit bills found in past weeks have been bad counterfeit jobs, though the bill from Taco John's was a little better.
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"Most people trying to pass a counterfeit bill will do it at the busiest time of day or sometimes in places with a low light level, such as a bar or restaurant," Cumiskey said.
In the past, the police department has seen about 10 to 12 counterfeit bills a year, which makes them more common than crimes such as murder or sexual assault.
"Counterfeit bills are easier to do, even with the added security measures," Cumiskey said. "People are putting them on scanners and printing them out."
Cumiskey believes the recent rash of funny money cases are probably related, but the police currently have no suspects. They are still investigating.
Counterfeiting currency is a federal felony, and anyone caught making the bills will find themselves in U.S. District Court.
"Counterfeiters are violating U.S. laws," Cumiskey said. "The Secret Service is meaner than we are, or let's just say they aren't Minnesota-friendly. If you meet them it, is because you are counterfeiting money or threatening a President or former President. You don't want them knocking on your door."
The easiest way to tell a counterfeit bill from a real bill is by using a water pen, which will leave no mark on a real bill. On a counterfeit bill, it leaves a black or brown mark.
Another way to catch the bills is the difference in paper. U.S. currency is printed on a linen-type paper unavailable to the general public. Other security measures include the strip inside the bill, the portrait on the front, the clear border on the bill and the special "never dry" ink.
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Many of the counterfeit bills discovered are not quite the same size as a real bill. Markings may be blurred as the counterfeiters try to rough up the paper, the colors are skewed and quite often the bills will all have the same serial number.
All of the counterfeit bills have been or will be sent to the Secret Service. Cumiskey said local police probably won't hear anything back from the Secret Service unless the police department locates a suspect, or if the Secret Service has intelligence to pass back to the department.
