Counterfeit Money has made its way through the Treasure Valley.

Information courtesy of Ed Fritz, Crime Prevention Supervisor with the Boise Police Department.

Since mid-April Boise Police has taken over 40 reports of businesses receiving counterfeit bills. While most people would assume counterfeits would only be large bills, like $100, the counterfeits in these cases have included $10s, $20s, and $50 in addition to seeing $100s. This summer BPD made an arrest on two local individuals who were connected to a traveling group passing counterfeit bills around the Northwest.

Some of the counterfeits we see are motion picture money, which is a prop made for movies or television. These can be easily identified by looking for “PROP” or “For Motion Picture Use Only” printed on the bill. Others are training money from China, which has Chinese writing on the bill, translating to “not to be used as real currency.” Others are illegally printed bills, sometimes printed on a real bill that has been washed to remove the ink.

To identify a counterfeit:

*Feel the paper, which should feel slightly rough to the touch from the printing process and the paper used. Some counterfeits have been described as feeling different or waxy.

*Check with light by holding the bill up and looking for the watermark and the security thread. The thread is different on each denomination $5 and higher. Water marks on

*$10s and higher should match the portrait on the front of the bill.

*Look at the serial number. Do you have multiple bills with the same number?

*Compare to another bill of the same denomination and look for differences. All bills, excluding $1s and $2s, have been redesigned since 1990, so compare to the same series.

*Look for additional printing or strange features, such as Chinese words.

If you need to report a tip call Crime Stoppers at (208) 343-Cops or online at http://www.343cops.com.

If you think you have counterfeit money in your possession, call your local police department.