Police Investigate "Funny Money"

LIBERTY, April 7, 2010 The Liberty Police Department is seeing an increase in calls related to counterfeit currency. Over the past couple of weeks, LPD has investigated six cases involving “funny money” In each case, $5 bills have been bleached, and then reprinted to look like $100 bills. In a couple of cases, the bills had been dispersed by local banks. The bills are passing basic counterfeit detection techniques because they are printed on the actual linen-based paper of the original bill. As such, counterfeit detection pens used to check the bills aren’t showing anything wrong.

An easy way for consumers to check their currency is to hold it up to the light. On a $100 bill, you should be able to see the watermark of Benjamin Franklin’s portrait. If you see Abraham Lincoln instead, then your bill is a counterfeit. Also, if the security thread says “FIVE”, the bill is a counterfeit. An additional check using an ultraviolet light would show a $5 bill’s security thread, which glows blue.

The Liberty Police Department has notified the U.S. Secret Service of the recent cases in Liberty. Prosecution of counterfeit currency cases can be done in federal court, or they can be handled as Forgeries at the state level. Forgery, involving money, is a third-degree felony in Texas, punishable from two to 10 years in prison and up to a $10,000 fine.

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