Lincoln Lies

With the next $100 bill you get, make sure there isn't an Abraham Lincoln hiding in place of Benjamin Franklin.

In three separate but similar incidents, Summerville police have responded to counterfeit claims from area businesses. 

The first two occurred July 13 at Taco Bell, 981 Bacons Bridge Road, and Kangaroo, 1595 Trolley Road, according to available incident reports. The next was July 15 at Ross, 428 Azalea Square Blvd. 

According to the reports, a $5 bill is allegedly disguised as a $100 bill and is used to make a small purchase. 

"We have no way of knowing if they're connected," said Capt. Jon Rogers, public information officer for Summerville police.

He said it is common for counterfeiters to use real money to look like a higher-dollar currency.

"To a busy cashier that's got 40 people in line … it looks like real currency," Rogers said. 

The July 13 report at Taco Bell describes two black men, about 19-20 years old, one six-foot tall and 160 pounds. The fake $100 bill was used to purchase $13.62 in food from the restaurant. It is not stated in this report that the bill was a concealed as a $5 bill. 

The report at Kangaroo offers no description of the subjects. However, it identifies a counterfeit $100 bill that is actually a $5 bill. The purchase price is unknown.

The July 15 report describes a black man between the ages of 22-26 years old, about six-feet tall and 180 pounds, who passed a $5 as a $100 bill in a $7.55 purchase. The store manager said the bill passed the counterfeit-detection pen because it was a real bill. She was tipped off to the deceit by a hologram of Abraham Lincoln in the front right corner instead of Benjamin Franklin, according to the incident report.

"Anytime someone finds funny money, we get it and we turn it over to secret service," Rogers said.