Counterfeit bills burn local businesses
Counterfeit money has re-surfaced and re-circulated on Fort Myers Beach in the form of washed out $5 bills disguised as $50 reprints.
Local Beach businesses -such as Tropics Bar & Grill and the Beach Whale-have been feeling the pinch when depositing daily money at their respective banks. The targeted spots are out of luck if the money they deposit is counterfeit.
“As soon as we receive a counterfeit bill, basically we have to take the bill and send it out straight to the Secret Service,” said Gerald Mercado of Wachovia Bank on 2815 Estero Blvd. “There’s a report we have to fill out. We send out the report with the bill and they send it right back saying they received it.”
The fraudulent bill gets seized until the Secret Service lets the bank know if the bill is counterfeit or not.
“(The counterfeit process involves) $5 bills that are washed out and a $50 print is placed on top of it,” said Mercado, who has detected $400 in counterfeit money in the past week or two. “If it’s not counterfeit, they’ll send the bill back to us and we’ll notify the customer.”
Bank tellers are familiar with the touch, feel and look of money. They are accustomed to detect fake money…unlike a bartender or server who is more inclined to take a quick look and make change.
“You have to take a second and look at the bill,” said Jeff Kelly, resident agent in charge at the Fort Myers Secret Service office. “Genuine currency will not bleed. If these bills get wet, the ink runs just like a document that is printed. Also, check the other security features. The portraits should match on the bill if you hold it up to the light.”
Fast food and drink does not always equal fastidious measures.
“That’s the whole problem with the economy,” said Kelly. “We live in a fast-pace world where workers are trained to get people in and out. If you look at the $5 bill, you can obviously tell it’s counterfeit by the water mark of Abraham Lincoln and the security strip which is embedded in the paper that says USA 5 on it. The merchant taking the bill makes a decision in a split second. They need to slow down and take a look at the bill.”
Kelly said a bleaching agent was used on these type of bills.
“This process is kind of different,” he said. “Most businesses use the counterfeit detecting pen to deter counterfeiting, but the pen won’t react to that because it is genuine paper.”
Mercado said the counterfeit pen detectors are only 60 percent accurate anyway. An effective pen will detect a yellow or clear mark to indicate a good bill, while a brown or gray mark is a suspected bill.
Times have changed when making counterfeit bills was deemed an art, according to Kelly.
“People reprint notes using ink jet technology which accounts for 70 percent of the counterfeit out there,” he said. “You used to have to be skilled; an artist. Now, with the day and age of the computer and computer printers, anyone can hook it up.”
The local Secret Service agency receives an average of $3,000 to $4,000 in counterfeit bills every five days. Compare that to Miami’s $35,000 to $40,000 for the same period of time. The majority of $100 bills and larger notes come from overseas.
“Only 1/100 of one percent of money is counterfeit,” said Kelly. “That’s out of $700 billion. During the civil war, 1 of every 3 bills was counterfeit. Then the Secret Service was established in 1865 to combat counterfeiters.
“We’re known for protecting leaders of this country, but we were first created to combat counterfeit money. With our partnerships with local law enforcement, U.S. and state attorneys offices, we track down and investigate every counterfeit bill that gets passed.”
Both men have noticed that Fort Myers Beach was targeted recently and offer advice if counterfeit money reaches your hands again.
“If it looks funny, don’t take it,” said Mercado.
“Most important, if you do receive a counterfeit bill and you know who passed it to you, call 911,” said Kelly. “The local sheriff’s office will respond. Also, try to jot down suspect information like description and tag number.”