Four west-side Columbus restaurants have reported counterfeit $100 bills being used to pay for food at their businesses.
In each case, the restaurant patron used a fake $100 bill to pay for inexpensive food items and left the restaurant a short time later with change from the bill, said Lt. Matt Harris, Columbus Police Department spokesman.
The fraudulent currency is poor quality and does not have security features, Harris said. The colors on the bill and the style is also off on the fake bills as compared to real currency, he said.
Restaurant staff said the person using the counterfeit money was a black male with a light complexion, with tattoos on his face, neck and at least one of his hands.
The police department said it is encouraging businesses and employees to familiarize themselves with the security features on legitimate currency and to contact the police department if they suspect a fake bill. Some of the bills in the four cases were caught by bank personnel who were handling deposits from the restaurants, Harris said.
Anyone with information in regards to these cases is urged to contact Columbus Police Detective Bill Ziegler at 812-376-2627.
