HOUSTON – Fake money showed up at a business in the Houston area and its manager wants to make a big deal about it.
He’s hoping others will check their wallets.
The U.S. Secret Service won’t say how many cases it is investigating, but a deputy special agent in charge in Houston says at any given time several such cases are being investigated by agents.
At 24 Hour Tire on the South Beltway near Almeda Road, general manager Robert Moore learned a customer paid for a tire in part with counterfeit money.
The tire shop is one of only a few in Houston open 24 hours a day.
“At the time we were very, very busy. A gentleman came to purchase a tire,” Robert Moore said Tuesday. “We were handed a $20 bill that was later found to be counterfeit.”
Moore learned the bill was fake when another employee pointed out a serial number oddly placed on the back of the bill.
There were other clues too.
President Jackson is on the $20, but below his face on the fake bill: the name “Cruger” was printed.
“There is no Cruger on a $20 bill,” Moore said.
He filed a police report.
Moore says this is the second time recently that a customer has used counterfeit money at his tire shop.
“Working for a small business owner, being a general manger, we work hard to provide a great service to the public because we know what we do is very much necessary. If we continue to get these bills, there won’t be a 24 Hour Tire Shop in Houston anymore,” he said.
KNOW YOUR MONEY
The Secret Service says look for color changing ink, a strip embedded in bills and be aware of printing that appears not to be centered. You can also see if the year the bill was printed matched a code system in the serial number of the bill.
Learn about that code system and more ways to spot fake money by reading the Secret Service’s Know Your Money guide here.
If you have a tip about this story or another story idea for investigative reporter Jace Larson, email or text him at jlarson@kprc.com or 832-493-3951.