A few months ago, some attractive 100-peso bills were issued, commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Mexican Constitution.
They were certainly attractive to counterfeiters. Now the Bank of Mexico has alerted the population to be wary of fakes.
According to reports from Banxico, 268 phony bills have been spotted from across the country, mainly in Mexico City, but potentially anywhere.
Passing counterfeit bills can results in a prison term of up to 12 years. Larger denominations are more commonly faked, so this scam could catch anyone off guard.
The bank has offered some ways to spot a bad bill:
- Look for a bright gold green thread, which if moved vertically appears to close in on itself.
- Hold the bill up the light for an eagle watermark.
- Touch the serial number, which should be raised slightly from the paper.
- Observe the ink that changes the golden color of the book of the Constitution.
False bills are of inferior quality paper, so that they can immediately be detected by touch and sight, say officials.
Suspicious bills should be taken to a bank branch, which will forward them to the Bank of Mexico for analysis. They can also be handed over directly at Banco de México’s customer service windows.
With information from Noticieros Televisa
