Schumer: New Numbers Show Counterfeit Money Has Become An Alarming Trend In Watertown; Several Local Stores Have Suffered In The Last Several Months & Are Left High And Dry When They Go To Deposit Fake Bills - Schumer Urges Secret Service To Step Up Efforts To Combat Counterfeit Bills & Provide Resources To Help Local Watertown Retailers Identify Fake Currency

Press Release

At The Mustard Seed in Watertown, a local business and victim of a counterfeit money scheme, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer today urged the Secret Service to step up its efforts to combat the uptick in counterfeit money circulating in the Watertown area. Schumer said that over the last four years, according to the Watertown Police Department, thousands of dollars in counterfeit money has been identified in Watertown area, which means it is likely there are thousands of dollars more in circulation that have gone undetected. Recently, multiple stores in the Watertown area have reported counterfeit transactions. Schumer said that fake bills are a serious problem for local shop owners, since they have little to no recourse for recouping the money they are owed. Schumer therefore urged the Secret Service to step up its efforts and work with local law enforcement to get to the bottom of the proliferation of fake currency and to supply the resources local retailers need to identify fake bills.

"With counterfeiting on the rise in the Watertown area, local businesses need assistance understanding what's real and what's fake. Simply put, the Secret Service needs to collaborate more closely with local law enforcement to get to the bottom of who is producing this fake currency and step up its efforts in the Watertown area," said Schumer. "With thousands of dollars' worth of counterfeit bills seized in Watertown in over the last several years, who's to know how many more of thousands of dollars of fake currency is making its way from the cash register to your pocket? Businesses are not always unequipped to identify these fake bills, and they are the ones facing a hit to their bottom line that they can ill-afford. The feds must provide resources and training for local retailers to help them identify fake bills, and we must root this counterfeit currency out at its source."

Schumer explained that counterfeit currency is often hard to detect because it can exchange hands multiple times -- and among completely innocent people -- for a long time before it comes to the attention of local law enforcement. For this reason, Schumer said it is likely that there are thousands of dollars' worth of counterfeit bills circulating through the Watertown economy right now, and that many local businesses may not even realize yet that they are victims. Schumer said this situation is precarious for businesses, particularly for local, small businesses, whose owners often do not learn they have been holding onto bad bills until they are at the bank and having difficulty depositing the money. What's more, Schumer said, is there is little to no recourse for businesses that fall victim to counterfeit transactions. Schumer said this means a local business owner could only learn once they have brought a weeks' worth of sales to the bank that they are holding onto worthless, fake paper notes, and have no way of recouping losses that are no fault of their own.

Schumer said, according to the Watertown Police Department, the prevalence of counterfeit money has been climbing over the last several years: with $350 being reported in 2012 to $755 in 2014. This number has already grown to $870 in 2015, representing over a 144% increase. Counterfeit cases alone have grown over 87%, from 8 in 2012 to 15 in 2015. Particularly, Watertown Police have witnessed an uptick in $50 bills reported, from none in 2012 to 11 so far this year. Watertown Police says this data does not take into account any cases involving counterfeit money that may be listed as fraud or forgery.

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