Fake Bill . . . DENIED!

[Sapphire Silk]

Last night I stopped at local convenience store/gas station for a soda. Pretty run of the mill . . . grabbed what I wanted, went to the counter to pay. Store not busy at all.

As a female clerk is ringing me up, another clerk (male) is trying to scan a $10 from another guy looking to buy gas.

Me:
FC: Female clerk
MC: Male clerk
SC: Scammer sucky customer

FC: (as the MC holds up the bill to look through it) If it won't scan, it's fake.
MC: Yeah, it's definately fake.
FC: You need to call the cops
MC: Right. (walks to counter, and says to SC): I need your ID, man.
SC: What for?
MC: The bill is fake. Gotta call the law.
SC: Well, uhm. Uhm.. Well, just give it back.
MC: Can't do it, man. I have to turn it over to the police. I need your ID.

For the next several moments, SC hemmes and haws as I finish paying for my soda. Everyone in the store is staring at him now. Not being sure what is going to happen, and it being none of my business, I leave and get in my car.

A few minutes later, SC saunters out (really, he sauntered), stands by his car a minute, then gets in. I watch him in the rear view, wondering what is going to happen next. I can see MC pointing at him, and yelling something.

SC starts backing up his car. The front end was facing the store, and here in North Carolina we only have rear plates. I see MC come out and take a picture of the SC's car as the moron backs comepletely out of the lot onto the busy road!!!

So I back up, turn around, and pull in behind the nimrod, and get his license plate number. Then I turn around and head back into the store as MC is calling the cops.

Me: Hey, dude? Want the guy's license plate number?

(Cue big grins from MC, FC, and the other customers)

One of the customers noted my ID tag and asked what my job was.

Me: I'm a nurse. But when an idiot like that backs up into traffic, and almost causes an accident, he needs to go to jail.

Hope the cops caught him.

[Whiskey]

Assuming he doesnt have a record, couldn't he get off just by saying he didn't know it was fake? Rarely, but it happens, you can get fake bills from a bank because they slipped through. I'm not saying this is the case (obviously its not) but if someone has a clean record how do you tell counterfeiters from people who got a bad bill?

[Sapphire Silk]

Assuming he doesn't have a record, couldn't he get off just by saying he didn't know it was fake? Rarely, but it happens, you can get fake bills from a bank because they slipped through. I'm not saying this is the case (obviously its not) but if someone has a clean record how do you tell counterfeiters from people who got a bad bill?

That's an issue for the police to investigate. That he took off tells me he knew the bill was fake. I doubt the police would have arrested him, unless he had more fake bills in his wallet.

He should have stuck around. Then he compounded what he did by backing out dangerously from the parking lot, which tells me he didn't want anyone to get his license plate number.

But you do have a point; when I was in the tax department recently to pay a bill, Evil Empryss asked if they ever got fake bills. Yes, was the reply, and they used to call the cops, but recently had been told to stop doing so. Sheriff probably didn't want to waste the manpower for the very reason you cite--sometimes very good fakes even get by the banks.

[Darkforge]

I've been given a fake £5 as change once before, which I then used to pay for some candy at the supermarket (not knowing it was a fake) but the guy at the counter caught it and I got held, LP came and asked to check my wallet. I got out my wallet, they checked that all the other bills were real (and that I wasn't holding a wad of fakes). I cooperated and I got out 10 minutes later annoyed that I'd been given a fake note as change.

If you do a runner with that kind of thing it just shows you as guilty

on a side note do they really only have rear number plates in some states? that seems odd

[Whiskey]

on a side note do they really only have rear number plates in some states? that seems odd

Yes? Kansas is one of them.

[Sliceanddice]

arizona too.

[Amina516]

I didnt realize that all states didnt have rear license plates. Lol. I need to get out of my corner of the world.../sigh.

Nicely done, Panacea.

[RetailWorkhorse]

on a side note do they really only have rear number plates in some states?

Tennessee only has the rear-plate requirement.

Ah, hell, I've seen the tag in the front windshield rather than in the rear.

[Jay 2K Winger]

IANAL, but I think the basic law anywhere in the States is that your car must have a rear license plate. Front license plate only if your particular state requires it, otherwise it's optional.

[Whiskey]

IANAL, but I think the basic law anywhere in the States is that your car must have a rear license plate. Front license plate only if your particular state requires it, otherwise it's optional.

Cops need to see that plate. Rear plate required everywhere.

[Jay 2K Winger]

Cops need to see that plate. Rear plate required everywhere.

Yup. I know that.

We had someone pull that "backing up into the lot so you can't see our license plate" thing once at the wholesale club. What did they do that made us want to get their tag number?

They stole a soda from the food court and threatened to stab my CW if she came any closer to them.

[jjllbb]

As a female clerk is ringing me up, another clerk (male) is trying to scan a $10 from another guy looking to buy gas.

Seriously? People make fake $10's? Are they idiots or evil geniuses for trying to keep it under the radar? I've never even thought to check a $10. $20's and above yeah, but $10's...

[Sapphire Silk]

Seriously? People make fake $10's? Are they idiots or evil geniuses for trying to keep it under the radar? I've never even thought to check a $10. $20's and above yeah, but $10's...

Small bills are actually the most counterfeited. Even $1's are faked, usually by small at home operators. That's why the same security precautions in 20's were recently put into 5's and 10's.

And re the comments on rear license plates: it's interesting. EE and I had this same discussion a while ago (we were talking about license plates in her garage), and she was of the opinion having only one plate was stupid. At the time I didn't think so.

After Sunday night, I see her point.

[malmalthekiller]

In our store we don't do anything to the person if we know or suspect it's fake. the only thing we do is note it and let our AP people know. Then they will cooperate with authorities.

[EvilEmpryss]

Hee-hee-hee! You heard it here, folks! Panacea admits I was right about something!

Whether or not the guy passing the fake tenner was guilty of doing it knowingly or not is a discussion for his lawyer and the cops. If it's the first time he's been caught doing it and he can come up with a very convincing story about where it might have come from, he might be able to get away with no repercussions. Two things make me think he's guilty as hell, though:

1. He ran. Clearly he was debating whether or not to do so, but he made the wrong choice.

2. He *backed* out when he ran. He put enough thought into running that he realized they would try to report his plates to the cops. Someone trying to run because they just panicked would pull out normally but at high speed.

Throw the book at him.