For the second time in a month, an eastern Iowa metro area’s been hit by counterfeiters. Coralville police Lieutenant Ron Wenman says a flurry of phony money’s been passed in the past few days at area restaurants, gas stations and department stores. Lieutenant Wenman says it appears to be a “coordinated effort” as bogus bills also appeared in recent days in Iowa City and Cedar Rapids. He says the denominations of the fake cash were twenties, fifties and hundreds. Wenman says residents and merchants need to keep an eye out for the bad bills.Wenman says you can look for the various security measures built into the bills, in addition to the inferior paper quality. He says advanced computer technology has enabled more criminals to try their skills in this area. In early January, Waterloo police reported a series of counterfeit bills being passed at a variety of businesses. No arrests have been made in either case.
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