Over $200 in counterfeit money has been seized and officers are trying to determine where the money might have originated, although they admit it might not be that easy to track down.

The money was confiscated after Sampson sheriff’s deputies were called to a Roseboro gas station in the 200-block of East Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard where the clerk had spotted what was believed to be fake bills.

A Garland man had attempted pay for items with the money which was determined to be counterfeit.

In total, a $100 bill and six $20 bills were determined to be fake and seized by authorities.

The man who passed the bill, said Corporal Marcus Smith, with the Sheriff’s Department, likely didn’t know the money was fake.

“You see it happen a lot. People wind up with counterfeit money after getting cash from any number of places and then they, in turn, unsuspectingly pass it to someone else. It takes a person being able to recognize that the money isn’t real to stop it.”

That’s what happened this week when the clerk questioned the money and called law enforcement.

“There’s no telling where this money came from. It could be local, but really it could be from anywhere. It’s very hard to track.”

He urged businesses to pay attention to the bills being passed, particularly those in larger denominations. “We’re seeing more and more businesses doing just that, even fast food chain drive-thrus. It’s good, too, because people will have a fake bill, purchase something and get real change back. It ends up that they are replacing bad money with good money and the business ends up the victim.”

Diligence in looking for fake bills is key, Smith said.