Florida police warning of counterfeit money; Restaurants taking precautions

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The Delray Beach Police Department is asking residents to be on the lookout for counterfeit money after several reports of fraudulent bills in the city.

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The police department says there have been several reports of counterfeit $20 bills being used at restaurants in the city. While managers at El Camino Mexican Soul Food and Tequila Bar say this has not happened at their restaurant, they say staff is on the lookout for anything suspicious.

"With the heightened sensitivity with the $20 bills, we are certainly slowing down to make sure everyone looks correct and orderly and if there are any issues, we are doubling back on that," said Francis Lake, vice president of operations of Modern Restaurant Group. "The good news is we haven’t had any of those that are cycling through our restaurant and we are staying super vigilant to make sure that doesn’t happen."

The police department has not shared which restaurants were victimized by counterfeit $20 bills, just that businesses and residents should stay vigilant.

At El Camino Restaurant in Downtown Delray Beach, management says they are always on the lookout for possible counterfeit money.

"Cash handling is always a priority any time, especially with an alert, but at any time, we make sure that we do it accordingly,” said Lake.

Lake also says in addition to the counterfeit detection pen, they use ultraviolet light to check notes and have a counterfeit bill detector machine as well.

The Delray Beach Police Department urges businesses to make sure they use counterfeit detection pens and a UV light to find the security strip on the bill. The security strip is on the left side of the front of the bill and lights up in green when shined with a UV light.

Anyone who suspects they've received counterfeit money is urged to contact the Delray Beach Police Department at 561-243-7800

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