Yuma Police Dept. warns of fake Chinese ‘training money’
The Yuma Police Department has received a few reports the past several months about fake “training money” being passed around within the city as real money, and is warning the community to be careful when conducting a cash transaction.
The fake bills, which can come in all denominations, appear to be used in China for trainees to practice with, instead of using real Chinese currency, which can be stolen.
“Most of the time they have been spotted, but a few have been used,” said YPD spokesperson Sgt. Lori Franklin. “We just want to inform the community about it so they can be aware of it.”
Franklin said the fake money is widely available for sale on the internet from websites such as Ebay — from both China and from within the United States.
It is pretty easy to spot the fake money, according to Franklin, because they are stamped with pink or purple Chinese lettering, which states “For Training Purposes Only.” The phony bills also contain a number of other obviously incorrect features, such as the paper feels different.
“It is not all that uncommon for people to receive money that has been marked on, so sometimes they may not notice it,” Franklin said.
Yuma police are advising the public be vigilant and pay attention to what they take as payment and what they receive as change. Someone may not realize they’ve received one if it is stacked with other money or given to them folded up.
Anyone who comes across the fake cash is encouraged to contact their local law enforcement agency.
According to the Federal Reserve, the best way to determine whether a note is genuine is to rely on the security features, such as the watermark and security thread.
Counterfeit detection pens are not always accurate and may give you false results.
To learn about these and other security features in genuine Federal Reserve notes, visit the new money public education website at USCurrency.gov.
It is important to know what the security features are in genuine currency, because if you end up with a counterfeit note, you will lose that money.
A counterfeit note cannot be exchanged for a genuine one, and it is illegal to knowingly pass counterfeit currency.