Owasso Business Owner Warns Others About Counterfeit Money Going Around

An Owasso business owner has a warning for everyone after someone came into her store and paid with counterfeit money.

The owner of Prairie Bakery, Anna Richardson, says the bill looked convincing and she didn't realize it was fake until she got to the bank to make a deposit. Richardson said she didn't know who paid with that fake $20 bill.

Since the customer was given real money back as a change, it's a loss for her small business. Richardson and her staff work hard to serve up some of the sweetest bites in Owasso. But when she learned that one of the bills in her register was fake, things quickly turned sour.

"The $20 bill actually said for Motion Picture Purposes Only on it, which is just crazy to me," said Richardson.

It wasn't until Richardson took the money to a bank to deposit that she learned from the teller that something was wrong.

"I still feel silly that I fell for that when I look back on it, but it's easy to do and if somebody is confidently handing you that money, you trust that they're in here to pay you with real money," said Richardson.

The US Secret Service says it's more and more difficult to spot fake money. They say to look out for the security thread, watermark, and color-shifting ink on each bill.

Richardson said she is taking the conversations and advice she's learned through this experience to tell her staff what to look out for moving forward.

"I don't want to not trust people, because I like to see the good in everybody, but we have to be really conscious now and should always be of what we're taking from people," said Richardson.

It was only $20 this time, but those hits can quickly add up.

"When you're a little business in town and you're trying to just keep things going, that can hurt," said Richardson.

If you've received counterfeit money, police ask you to call them as soon as possible. It's also helpful for investigators if you can safely get a description of anyone who is giving it out.