Bank warns of counterfeit bills following incident in Billings

With an unknown number counterfeit hundred-dollar bills believed to now be in circulation after an incident in Billings, MT, last week, Andy Miller, President of Sundance State Bank, is warning businesses and citizens that some could make it through to Crook County.

“I don’t know how much trickle will make it through to our area, but there’s certainly potential,” he says.

“Be aware when you take a $100 bill from somebody to make sure it feels right, make sure it looks right, make sure the security features are there and just be cautious because they could be floating around in our area.”

The bank received an alert for the counterfeit bills late last week.

“There was a large number of counterfeit bills up in Billings that it sounds like were dumped out on a street up there,” he says.

According to local reports, thousands of dollars in $100 bills were found on the street in Billings on January 24 and passers-by were scrambling to collect them.

At this time, no suspect or motive has been identified. It is also not known how many bills were created and what percentage of them have been recovered.

The bills reportedly look real. Fortunately, there is a clear sign to watch out for that the bill you are handling is among this batch of counterfeits:

“They were all the same serial number,” says Miller.

The serial number to watch out for is LF1139129C.

In addition, he says, while the bills did look like the real thing, “The other telltale sign is the feel of the bill was not right – it didn’t feel like a typical bill.”

According to local reports, the bills also lack a watermark and the blue line is incorrect.

Forging a $100 bill is not an easy task in modern times, because each one is embedded with numerous security features.

“We actually bring the third grade class in here to the bank and one of the things I do is walk them through that $100 bill. There’s security strips in there, there’s ink that changes color,” he says.

“It’s amazing how many features are built into that $100 bill to keep it harder to counterfeit than any of the others.”

Though the feel and serial number are key in this instance, there are other features you can watch out for in the future to make sure you are handling real $100 bills.

These include a security thread to the left of the portrait imprinted with the letters USA and numeral 100, which glows pink in UV light; a 3-D security ribbon woven into the paper on which the bells and 100s should move as you tilt the note; a bell in the copper inkwell that will change from copper to green as you tilt the note; a faint image of Benjamin Franklin in the blank space to the right of the portrait (visible from both sides of the bill); and a color-changing numeral in the lower right corner.

If you do find yourself in possession of a counterfeit bills, Miller recommends going either to the Crook County Sheriff’s Office or Sundance State Bank for help.

“Do your very best to identify it before you take it. Unfortunately, once you take it, then it’s going to be difficult to go back,” Miller says.

“We can help go through that process to make sure it’s taken out of circulation. Unfortunately, we can’t take it in and give you your $100 back.”