Lufkin Police
Department:
LUFKIN (KYTX) - On Thursday, February 7, 2013, an employee of M&B Food Mart, located at 708 North Raguet Street, reported
that around 7:28 p.m. an unidentified male suspect attempted to pass counterfeit
currency at the business. The employee inspected the currency presented by the
suspect and determined that the paper was that of a $1 bill from which the ink
had been removed. When the employee confronted the suspect about the
counterfeit bill, he fled from the store.
Bill washing appears to be the technique used in this
case. Counterfeiters "wash" the ink off a low denomination bill, typically a $5
bill, by using any number of different solvent solutions, including some common
household cleaners. If performed properly, the washing process does not harm
the paper or certain security characteristics of the original bill. This leaves
the counterfeiter a blank piece of genuine currency paper upon which to print a
larger denomination bill, typically a $100 bill.
The washed counterfeit note will pass the "counterfeit
pen" test because the pen merely tests the paper, which would be genuine US
currency paper. If the original bill was a $5 bill or higher denomination, the
fake bill will have the anti-counterfeiting features one expects to find in
genuine currency, including red and blue fibers embedded in the paper, a
watermark that is visible from either side of the bill, and an embedded
polyester strip inscribed with the denomination of the bill that is visible when
held up to light and glows in ultraviolet light. Of course, these security
features will be correct only for the original bill but they might pass a casual
"eye-ball" inspection.
Ultraviolet light counterfeit detection devices are
capable of identifying this type of "washed" bills because the embedded security
threads will the proper color for the original bill, not for the larger
denomination. A $5 bill security thread will glow blue whereas a $100 bill
should appear as a very pale pink.
While technology is available to assist with detecting
counterfeit currency, anyone who knows what to look for can quickly and easily
spot funny money. Information concerning the features of genuine Federal
Reserve Notes online at www.secretservice.gov/know_your_money.shtml. Anyone who
doubts that a bill is genuine should contact their local police
department.
Converting fake money to genuine currency is the goal of
most persons passing counterfeit money. One simple way to achieve their goal is
to purchase items of little value and "pay" with a larger-than-necessary bill,
such as using a counterfeit $20, $50, or $100 bill to pay for a few dollars'
worth of merchandise. If not caught by the store employee, the counterfeit bill
can make its way to another customer.
Counterfeiters also sell the counterfeit bills; offering
several hundred dollars of fake bills in exchange for a few dollars of genuine
bills. If the suspicions of Lufkin PD investigators are correct, counterfeiters
recently employed this bill-selling technique in Lufkin and East Texas
businesses could soon see an increase in attempts to pass counterfeit
currency.
Anyone with information concerning persons involved in
counterfeiting money in the East Texas area can call Crime Stoppers of Lufkin at
(936) 639-TIPS or submit an anonymous tip at LufkinCrimeStoppers.com. Crime
Stoppers tipsters never have to give their name and Crime Stoppers may pay a
cash reward for information that leads to a felony arrest.
