‘It felt like money’: Cameras capture man paying with fake $100 bill in Murrells Inlet
MURRELLS INLET, S.C. (WMBF) - The search is on for a man accused of using fake $100 bills over the weekend, in the South Strand.
Inlet Rocks Bait and Tackle caught a man on camera, buying low-dollar items, with a $100 bogus bill.
“It was a five-dollar item, a can of red worms, plus a Gatorade. That way, he gets back as much as he can. You know what I mean,” said Inlet Rocks Bait and Tackle owner, Ronald Stalvey.
“It looked normal. It just felt like money,” said Inlet Rocks Bait and Tackle cashier, Tyler Caskie.
Caskie said he was working his normal shift when the incident happened.
“Someone paid with a 100. It’s happened plenty of times before, and I didn’t expect anything, so I rung him up, gave him his change, and told him have a great day,” said Caskie.
The crime may have gone unnoticed, had Stalvey not found the bad bill late Saturday night.
“I can pretty much look at that bill immediately and tell it was fake, just by the looks of it. But, if you hold it up to the light, it had the picture there, it had everything, but you know it’s just not real,” said Stalvey.
“It felt more papery. A little more papery,” said Caskie.
However, Stalvey said his business isn’t the only one in the Grand Strand to fall for the scheme, prompting him to band together with other entrepreneurs to catch the man responsible.
“Surfside Charlie’s sent me a message. The same guy passed them a fake hundred last week. We’re just trying to help each other out to stop this and send this to all the other businesses, so we know, ‘Hey, keep a lookout for this guy because right now, he’s still on the street and passing out fake hundreds.’”
Until authorities arrest the man behind this crime, Stalvey said his team will stay on high alert.
“You just have to eat it, and life goes on. I hope he gets what he deserves in the long run, and make sure it doesn’t happen to someone else,” said Stalvey.
The shop has since ordered several money readers to fight crime like this in the future.
Georgetown County Sheriff’s Office continues to search for the suspect.
If you know anything about the counterfeit money, reach out to GCSO’s non-emergency line 843.546.5102.
Copyright 2024 WMBF. All rights reserved.