Counterfeit Money at McDonald’s
“There’s nothing real about this meal.”
On January 1, 2023, approximately at 12:01 pm a slender black woman used Counterfeit money at 1075 Lincoln Way East McDonald’s to pay for her food. In the area of Franklin County, there have been a lot of instances where fake money has been used to purchase items. There have been countless reports within the Lincoln way area stores.
Stores such as Chick-fil-A and Sheetz have been hit by this pattern of Counterfeit Crime. It seems as though these such suspects only target fast food restaurants “well they are easy targets”, a cop with a tall, hefty stature and a deep friendly voicer who would like to remain anonymous said.
What Makes them easy targets?
These restaurants were only hit between eleven to twelve. The string of counterfeit money was given at these restaurants’ busiest time which is lunch. As these places get an influx of customers, employers and employees become overwhelmed and start losing their attention.
Of course, it is not their fault; this time is stressful and you have to make sure every order goes out . If an employee is worried about getting orders out on time during this rush there is a high possibility that they also won’t check the money that is given to them.
The McDonald’s Manager Steven James, standing at only 5’8 and lanky, can barely recall that day because of how busy it was. He spoke with a shaky conviction. He was in his late thirties yet sounded so unsure of the crime that had taken place.
His blonde patches of hair moved when he spoke in his low voice. “We didn’t know at first about the counterfeit 50-dollar bill we were so busy it brushed past us,” he exclaimed.
After that long shift, Steven did what he always did, switch out the drive-thru cash register with a new one so he can count the money. “I saw the 50 dollar bill in the cash register , usually to check big bills like that we use a dri-mark pen” A dri-mark pen has special ink in it that only shows up on fake money.
When he scratched the dri-pen the blue purplish hue appeared on the bill- it was fake.
He called the police and that’s when they looked at the security footage at the drive-thru There were only two people during the lunch rush that paid cash. They narrowed it down quickly because the 2nd customer ordered only 6 dollars’ worth of McDonald’s and they paid in singles and change.
This incident was similar for most of the Lincoln way fast food places during their lunch rush.
This string of counterfeit cases is really bad for businesses. They could lose a major profit. Even though these cases are fairly recent they haven’t caught this person yet. She is not a suspect yet more like a person of interest.
A person of interest is a person being sought after for questioning. “She might be connected to an ongoing investigation of other counterfeits in the Franklin county area,” the police department stated.
The fast food Restaurants in this area could raise their prices because of the loss of money. This could affect not only the business but the customers as well. Most of the customers in the area are college students; if the prices go up they will become less likely to go to those places. McDonald’s, Sheetz, and Chick-fil-A which are significantly packed places would start losing customers. These businesses would have no choice but to compensate because of the counterfeit money.
The Police department is still looking for this woman. She is out there and they really need a tip so they can ask her questions and hopefully put an end to the counterfeit operations in Franklin county.
To contact the Police Department and give them a tip use the number 717-264-4131