ROCK HILL, S.C. — Investigators unsealed evidence to show NBC Charlotte a major issue around Rock Hill -- fake money.
At a quick glance, the cash looked real. Detectives said even a counterfeit marker wouldn’t detect a problem.
“If you hit it with a pen, as you can see it shows up to be a good bill,” said Det. Keith Dugan.
Instead of printing fake money on paper, Det. Dugan said criminals are using real dollar bills and chemicals to manipulate the amount.
For example, a $50 bill may truly be a $5 bill.
Police said there’s a four-man crew in Rock Hill cashing in on the counterfeit bucks.
“For instance if they buy a $2 cake and they get $48 back and there’s four of them in the store, they can get away with hundreds of dollars in minutes,” said Dugan.
Police have arrested at least one person they believe was involved in the operation. Stephen Tilley was accused of scamming Walmart out of $800.
Police said there’s still fake money circulating in the area, so they want you to know how to spot it.
The first tip is simple; hold it up to the light and look closely.
“If there’s a hologram of a 5, and the 50s won’t have that,” said Dugan.
Police suggested to always check the serial numbers.
“It’ll be impossible to replicate the serial number two times so if you look at these bills, they have the same number, that’s a big indicator,” said Det. Dugan.