Counterfeiters Pick On Trenton, Georgia

TRENTON, GA. (WDEF-TV) – Modern technology is creating more problems for the federal government as it tries to stop counterfeiters.
Some of the fake bills are so good that it takes professionals at a bank to tell the difference.
Trenton, Georgia has been a popular target lately.

There are plenty of counterfeit 20’s and 100 dollar bills floating around Trenton, Georgia on I-59.
Law enforcement thinks most are passed by people looking for an easy target along a major interstate.

DET. TIM MITCHELL, TRENTON POLICE DEPT. "We had a 100 dollar bill this week confirmed…a version of it had passed through in Pennsylvania, Knoxville, Cleveland ..then we had the same serial number pop up here in Trenton ….and that had initiated in Ohio."

Detective Tim Mitchell says they don’t all get away easy.

DET. TIM MITCHELL, TRENTON POLICE DEPARTMENT "We did make an arrest at McDonalds
..there was a guy came through …actually passed through from Mississippi …and we caught him passing a counterfeit 100-dollar bill."

That man was Cory Dalton Cochran who was apprehended on October 8th. Records show that he made bond and apparently returned to Mississippi. Officers say he also faces charges in Fort Payne for passing a fake 100-dollar bill there.

There is one place where the number of counterfeit bills is easy to see—the local bank.

MIKE TATE, PRES. & CEO, BANK OF DADE "Just recently we’ve had some small bills…twenties to be exact..that came through the fast food places here in Trenton. Someone has been passing them and the businesses have been depositing them and our tellers have been catching them."

And, by the way—

MIKE TATE "Once they deposit with us…we have to take it out of circulation and..we have to send it to Washington ..and the business is liable for that difference..yes, that’s correct."

Using the traditional marker on the bill doesn’t always work.

DET. TIM MITCHELL "One way to prevent getting stuck with a counterfeit bill initially is ..you can use a black light. There’s a way you can us that…It will detect the holigraphic images inside…on the actual money."

In the United States, the 20-dollar bill is the most frequently counterfeited note.
In foreign countries the U.S. 100-dollar bill is the most frequently counterfeited denomination.