+briansnat Posted October 9, 2010 Share Posted October 9, 2010 Yep. Newbie cacher logged a cache of mine and mentioned that he left a counterfeit $10 bill that he received as a tip at work. I went there to remove it and sure enough there was a very real looking tenner. Had he not mentioned that it was counterfeit I may not have known. The feel was a bit wrong and there was no watermark, but other than that it looked so much like the real McCoy that I'm sure that had another cacher taken it without reading the log, there is a chance he might have wound up being lead out of a store in handcuffs. Quote Link to comment
+scaramedic Posted October 9, 2010 Share Posted October 9, 2010 Secret Service probably wouldn't mind having that.. Quote Link to comment
+scrapes Posted October 9, 2010 Share Posted October 9, 2010 Only in NJ. Drop it off at your local PD, a quick report and your done. Quote Link to comment
+wimseyguy Posted October 9, 2010 Share Posted October 9, 2010 (edited) It amazes me that people would take the risk to fake small denomination bills. I declined to take a couple of $5's from a customer the other day at work the paper just felt and looked wrong, and I told them just that. I'm positive they were fakies, and my customer had probably been given them as change from somewhere else. I spotted a nice looking 20 in their wallet and just said "why don't we take it out of that instead?" They didn't argue, and I wasn't faced with embarrassing them in front of friends and family. I hope they heard what I was saying and took note. When you handle a lot of currency you get a sense how it should look/feel. Edited October 9, 2010 by wimseyguy Quote Link to comment
+buttaskotch Posted October 9, 2010 Share Posted October 9, 2010 Wow! I mean, if they maybe wrote counterfeit across it, thats just really not cool. I wonder what they were thinking!!! Quote Link to comment
+ngrrfan Posted October 9, 2010 Share Posted October 9, 2010 I'll bet the police ask you where you got it, and how you got it, and from who. If it were me, I'd either burn it to destroy it, OR... I'd notify the cacher that I'm turning it over to the police and I'd appreciate it if they would meet me at the station to explain things. Quote Link to comment
+Cuddlefish Posted October 10, 2010 Share Posted October 10, 2010 To me, a non-American, all of your money looks counterfeit. Where is the colour? Quote Link to comment
+LukeTrocity Posted October 10, 2010 Share Posted October 10, 2010 I heard if you took all counterfeit US currency out of the US our economy would collapse! Quote Link to comment
+BlueDeuce Posted October 10, 2010 Share Posted October 10, 2010 Yep. Newbie cacher logged a cache of mine and mentioned that he left a counterfeit $10 bill that he received as a tip at work. I went there to remove it and sure enough there was a very real looking tenner. Had he not mentioned that it was counterfeit I may not have known. The feel was a bit wrong and there was no watermark, but other than that it looked so much like the real McCoy that I'm sure that had another cacher taken it without reading the log, there is a chance he might have wound up being lead out of a store in handcuffs. Worth noting. If I noticed it happening again (on any cache) I would probably send them a note asking what's the deal. Quote Link to comment
+scaramedic Posted October 10, 2010 Share Posted October 10, 2010 To me, a non-American, all of your money looks counterfeit. Where is the colour? Tell me about it. Every so often an idea is thrown around about jazzing up our bills but it always gets shot down. I like the idea of different colors for different denominations (like so much of the world) makes it quick and easy. That will be one purple and two oranges please! Greenbacks. Boring!! Our old food stamps were more creative than our actual money. Quote Link to comment
+power69 Posted October 10, 2010 Share Posted October 10, 2010 To me, a non-American, all of your money looks counterfeit. Where is the colour? Tell me about it. Every so often an idea is thrown around about jazzing up our bills but it always gets shot down. everytime theres a change, all those bill acceptors need to be rechipped. if you own a vending route its a big pain to redo everything. Quote Link to comment
+NYPaddleCacher Posted October 10, 2010 Share Posted October 10, 2010 It amazes me that people would take the risk to fake small denomination bills. I used to have a bunch of these that I used as swag: My log would usually say something like. "Took golfball. Left one million dollars." Quote Link to comment
+Knight2000 Posted October 10, 2010 Share Posted October 10, 2010 I know my kids would love the swag. +1 on a interesting trade item. It would be nice to mention if it was counterfeit but I still think it is a great trade item. Quote Link to comment
+FancoverFive Posted October 10, 2010 Share Posted October 10, 2010 With British money, it's easy to see what you got. A £5 is green, a £10 is orange, and a £20 purple. They also increase in size depending on their denomination, which helps blind people to know what they're holding. Back on-topic, if I were to find counterfeit money in a cache, and not know it was counterfeit, and then spend it, and get 'found out', I'd probably just say that I can't remember where I got that particular note from. Being tricked into using counterfeit money isn't a crime, is it? Quote Link to comment
Motorcycle_Mama Posted October 10, 2010 Share Posted October 10, 2010 For me, the counterfeit bill would fall into " ....or other illicit material shouldn't be placed in a cache. As always respect the local laws." Quote Link to comment
+Knight2000 Posted October 10, 2010 Share Posted October 10, 2010 For me, the counterfeit bill would fall into " ....or other illicit material shouldn't be placed in a cache. As always respect the local laws." I beleive it would only be illicit or unlawful it someone tried to spend it knowing that it was counterfeit. Quote Link to comment
Motorcycle_Mama Posted October 10, 2010 Share Posted October 10, 2010 Producing it is illegal. http://www.secretservice.gov/money_law.shtml KNOW YOUR MONEY It's the Law Manufacturing counterfeit United States currency or altering genuine currency to increase its value is a violation of Title 18, Section 471 of the United States Code and is punishable by a fine or imprisonment for up to 15 years, or both. Possession of counterfeit United States obligations with fraudulent intent is a violation of Title 18, Section 472 of the United States Code and is punishable by a fine or imprisonment for up to 15 years, or both. Anyone who manufactures a counterfeit U.S. coin in any denomination above five cents is subject to the same penalties as all other counterfeiters. Anyone who alters a genuine coin to increase its numismatic value is in violation of Title 18, Section 331 of the United States Code, which is punishable by a fine or imprisonment for up to five years, or both. Forging, altering, or trafficking in United States Government checks, bonds or other obligations is a violation of Title 18, Section 510 of the United States Code and is punishable by a fine or imprisonment for up to 10 years, or both. Printed reproductions, including photographs of paper currency, checks, bonds, postage stamps, revenue stamps, and securities of the United States and foreign governments (except under the conditions previously listed) are violations of Title 18, Section 474 of the United States Code. Violations are punishable by a fine or imprisonment for up to 15 years, or both. Quote Link to comment
+dreamarcher Posted October 11, 2010 Share Posted October 11, 2010 A couple times I've been stuck with $5 bill that didn't look or feel real because of some damage. I guess something like it being in bleach or weak acid by accident. One had turned bright blue on one side only. Store and gas station refused to accept them so I took them to my bank. Turned out they were real and just damaged so they exchanged them for me. Quote Link to comment
+Knight2000 Posted October 11, 2010 Share Posted October 11, 2010 Producing it is illegal. Most certainly. That is not what is being discussed though. There is no intent to defraud anyone. Quote Link to comment
+ihorn Posted October 11, 2010 Share Posted October 11, 2010 I heard if you took all counterfeit US currency out of the US our economy would collapse! Actually it would do nothing to the economy. Our economy is based on the amount of real bills in the system. Not on the amount of fake bills in it. So they really have nothing to do with our economy. If you took them out though a lot of people would get mad because they might have them in their pocket. Quote Link to comment
Motorcycle_Mama Posted October 11, 2010 Share Posted October 11, 2010 Producing it is illegal. Most certainly. That is not what is being discussed though. There is no intent to defraud anyone. Right. But the item in and of itself is illicit and illegal. Thus in accordance with the guidelines, it should not be placed in a cache. Quote Link to comment
+SeekerOfTheWay Posted October 11, 2010 Share Posted October 11, 2010 I found a counterfeit (joke) winning lottery ticket ($5000) in a cache once. I was so excited until I read where you send it to... Quote Link to comment
+Sol seaker Posted October 11, 2010 Share Posted October 11, 2010 There's someone around here who puts monopoly money in a cache and logs, "left 20. dollar bill" etc. Kind of annoying really. Leaving the counterfeit money is just irresponsible. Someone else could have gotten into trouble for it. A lot of people just download coordinates and don't even read the cache page. Good for you Brainsnat for realizing it was there and running out and getting it!!! The topic seems to be things in general not to leave in the cache, and we've ended up discussing this one incident. I'm not sure what is not covered in the rules already though. No food, no smelly items (so animals don't get into the container), no knives, nothing not child friendly, not sure what else. I have found stuff in caches like lighters and knives though. I take them out. I do trade for them, because someone traded them in there to start with. Quote Link to comment
+cw1710 Posted October 11, 2010 Share Posted October 11, 2010 I am a LEO and have seen a big increase in counterfeit money over the last few years. So much so that the Secret Service has to be notified for every bill we bring in and fairly quick after. It didnt used to be as urgent. People counterfeit smaller denomination bills like that do it because they are easier to pass off. If you went into Wal-Mart right now and paid with a 5 or 10 they would probably just throw it in the drawer. Bust out a 20 or higher and it gets hit with the detection pen. Oh, and yes Knight, possessing it is absolutely illegal whether you have the intent to use it or not. Quote Link to comment
+NYPaddleCacher Posted October 11, 2010 Share Posted October 11, 2010 I found a counterfeit (joke) winning lottery ticket ($5000) in a cache once. I was so excited until I read where you send it to... Nigeria? Quote Link to comment
+NYPaddleCacher Posted October 11, 2010 Share Posted October 11, 2010 I am a LEO and have seen a big increase in counterfeit money over the last few years. So much so that the Secret Service has to be notified for every bill we bring in and fairly quick after. It didnt used to be as urgent. People counterfeit smaller denomination bills like that do it because they are easier to pass off. If you went into Wal-Mart right now and paid with a 5 or 10 they would probably just throw it in the drawer. Bust out a 20 or higher and it gets hit with the detection pen. Oh, and yes Knight, possessing it is absolutely illegal whether you have the intent to use it or not. While reading a travel guide book for Beijing recently I noted a section which talking about counterfeit bills in China and how it's become quite a problem. The book suggested that that when exchanging currency asking for small denominations is recommended as many shops just won't accept larger denominations. Awhile back Zimbabwe introduced a 100 Trillion dollar bill, which at the time was worth about $300 US. Now, you can buy one on the internet for $10. Quote Link to comment
+redsox_mark Posted October 11, 2010 Share Posted October 11, 2010 (edited) It doesn't seem appropriate to me to knowingly place counterfeit money in a cache. In the UK we have pretty colours on the money, but I was amazed by a recent news item estimating that 1 out of every 36 pound coins (worth about $1.60 USD) are counterfeit! BBC Reference Edited October 11, 2010 by redsox_mark Quote Link to comment
JohnX Posted October 11, 2010 Share Posted October 11, 2010 To me, a non-American, all of your money looks counterfeit. Where is the colour? There is some color in the new American currency but is is not as colorful as currency from other countries. When I first saw the new $20 bills my first thought was 'Monopoly money!'. What I find interesting is the use of plastic instead of paper for bills in other countries. There are extra security features in new US currency and passports, some of which are very interesting. The whole money printing process (real and counterfeit) is quite complex and a topic worthy of research. J.X. Quote Link to comment
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