Bank officials in the Alton area, near St. Louis, say Abraham Lincoln has once again been turning into Benjamin Franklin this fall.
Just as they did last year, counterfeiters are getting out the bleach, fading “fives” and reprinting them into phony $100 bills. The latest round of bogus bills so far only has shown up in businesses’ bank deposits in Jerseyville and Carrollton, but a bank fraud investigator says they are probably being passed in other communities.
Robert Doyle, the fraud prevention coordinator for four Liberty Bank locations says most of the counterfeit bills are showing up in business deposits. Doyle says there are more counterfeit bills passed at Christmas, not only to buy gifts, but because there are so many cash transactions, and it’s easier for fake bills to go undetected.
