In Tampa, Florida, the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office is currently delving into a series of incidents involving counterfeit currency in the bustling area of Johns Pass. Business owners in the community have been caught off guard by the sophistication of the fake bills, which initially went undetected by standard verification methods.

“The currency pen didn’t flag them, and neither did our usual cash management practices,” explained Captain Dylan Hubbard, who runs Hubbard’s Marina. “It was only when things calmed down that we had the opportunity to scrutinize the bills more closely, revealing we had received some suspicious money.”