OPP warns retailers about influx of counterfeit cash

Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) is warning retailers and small businesses to be on the lookout for counterfeit currency after police received numerous complaints from companies in Simcoe.

Police say a man went to various businesses and used fake $5, $10 and $20 banknotes to pay.

The suspect involved in all of the incidents is described as being between five-foot-six and five-foot-eleven, with a thin to medium build and medium to long unkempt dark hair in a ponytail.

He was wearing blue jeans, a black flat-brimmed baseball hat with a sticker on the top left side, a black vest worn over a dark coloured hooded sweatshirt with a design logo on the front and dark boots with open laces.

The suspect was also wearing a bandanna over his face and had distinctive tattoos on both forearms.

OPP is urging all business owners and retailers to be alert and aware when accepting large denominations.

Police have offered the following tips to help spot counterfeit bills.

Feel the note
All Canadian and US currency is produced with raised ink on the shoulders of the portrait and elsewhere on the note. Run your fingernail over the shoulders of the portrait and you’ll feel the raised ink on a genuine note.

Look at the note
The finish on a genuine note does not scrape off and the colour does not run when it gets wet. The holographic foil strip is embedded in the note, not added as a sticker, and does not peel off.

Flip the note
Check to see the features in the large window repeated in the same colours and detail on the other side. The transparent window contains a metallic portrait that matches the larger one on the face of the note and changes colour when tilted. The transparent window also contains small numbers that match the value of the note.

The dollar value is also hidden in the frosted maple leaf in the corner.

On older notes, the holographic strip contains maple leaves that change colour when the note is tilted. This strip also contains small numbers that match the value of the note.

If you suspect a banknote is counterfeit, police say to politely refuse to accept it.

“Please inform the person to check the note with their bank and contact police in order to report a possible attempt to pass suspected counterfeit money,” said OPP in a news release.