Anyone who has been to Juanita Beach on a Friday night in July knows that it is a popular place. The Juanita Friday Market, along with Juanita Beach Park and open businesses, make for a social environment. But a crowded Juanita Spuds Fish and Chips restaurant made for a silent crime that could happen at any Kirkland business.

The business unknowingly received three counterfeit $20 bills and the problem is getting more frequent for establishments.

“It’s kind of like musical chairs and it stopped on us,” said Spuds owner Larry Marion. “I don’t want anyone else to have to go through this.”

Kirkland Chamber of Commerce President Bill Vadino said they heard about the crime on Tuesday morning.

“We are working on something to send all of our members to let them know what happened so they can keep their eyes out for this type of thing,” said Vadino.

Kirkland Police Department Detective. Don Carroll, who works with the Secret Service Electronic Crime Task Force, said that business owners need to inspect bills carefully.

“This happens a lot,” said Carroll. “We have a lot of counterfeiting. We had a case of 100s in North Bend, Redmond and in Kirkland and those 20s have been running around for awhile.”

Marion admits that his employees did not check the money close enough, but said he would have not caught it either.

The counterfeit money was spotted when he dropped them off to be deposited at the bank.

“They (the 20s) got kicked out on Saturday and the bank would not take them,” said Marion. “Someone at the bank said that they have received others like this … Sixty dollars isn’t the end of the world but it makes you mad.”

Marion put the fake bill next to a real one with no real discernible difference. The only major omission from the counterfeit note was the absence of a watermark and embedded security thread.

“If you look at them they are quite good but that is the problem. We use the pens for the $50 bills and higher, but that wouldn’t even have been enough on this,” said Marion, demonstrating that the pen had the same effect on the fake bill as the real one.

Marion said that he has filed a report with the Secret Service Electronic Crime Task Force. He was told by the task force that using the pen should not be a businesses’ only method of detection.

“They should look at the details on the edges and check them carefully,” said Carroll. “If someone buys a $5 item with a $100 bill, that is suspicious because they could be trying to launder the money.”

But when the counterfeit money gets into circulation it can be awhile before someone finds it.

“It is a game of musical chairs and it stopped on me,” said Marion. “The person who gave us this was probably not the same person who made it in their garage. It keeps circulating until the music stops and someone spots it.”

To report counterfeit bills, contact the Kirkland Police Department at 425-577-5656.