Who Counterfeits One Dollar Bills? Minnesota Bust Nets $900,000

The U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency recently made a big bust at the Canadian border. They confiscated $900,000 in counterfeit money at a Canadian border crossing near International Falls.

What I thought was odd was that the entire $900,000 was in one dollar bills. At first I thought, wow, this is crazy. Or is it genius?  How closely do merchants scrutinize a $1 bill? I'm guessing, not very often.

The counterfeit currency originated from China and was discovered during a search of a rail car at the border. Agents found 45 cartons of counterfeit $1 bills.

“CBP officers strive every day to protect the United States from a variety of threats,” said Jason Schmelz, Pembina Area Port Director. “Those threats don’t always come in the form of terrorists or narcotics, but also in the form of counterfeit currency and other goods that have the potential to harm the economy of the United States. Thanks to the dedication of our officers and our partnership with the Secret Service, we were able to keep this currency from entering into circulation.”

The counterfeit bills were turned over to the U.S. Secret Service for further investigation.

(KROC-AM News)