Pinellas County Sheriff’s investigators say they’ve busted a sophisticated counterfeit bill operation.
Sheriff’s detectives say a tip from an area business led them to Christopher DiPasquale and Robert Kowalczyk.
Detectives say the men were turning $1 bills into $100 bills.
Authorities say DiPasquale was creating the counterfeit cash inside his Clearwater home.
According to the report, he used common household products like Mr. Clean Magic Eraser to wash off the ink, then used a laser printer to make the new bills.
But it’s not as simple as it sounds.
“This is a very unique situation and a very unique and pretty sophisticated process,” said PCSO Sheriff Bob Gualtieri.
That’s because detectives say the men were using a $20,000 software program they created to print the realistic-looking money and followed that up with paints to give the bills a shine.
Then deputies say they went and spent the fake cash.
Detectives say they followed DiPasquale as he went from store to store, like Macy’s, Lowe’s, and a Wal-Mart in Pinellas Park where clerks thought the fake cash was the real deal.
“When you see the weave in the cotton and you’ve got the colors and stuff, it passes a pen test, they take it,” Gualtieri said. “Because it’s real money, it feels like it, it’s real stuff.”
Deputies say DiPasquale would buy merchandise, then return it and get the real money.
They say the other suspect in this case, Kowalczyk, was doing the same thing in Florida and California where he lives.
DiPasquale has bonded out of jail. Kowalczyk is still behind bars. Authorities say if you think you might have a counterfeit $100 bill call law enforcement.