Two women tried to use a $1 million bill at a Dollar General — and they paid the price for it

Million-dollar bills aren't real and have only been printed as a joke, but sometimes people try to push their luck and end up in a soup. Two women in Tennessee were reported to police after one of them offered a $1 million bill to pay for items at the Dollar General in Maryville, Tenn, according to The Daily Times. The crime was reported by an employee of the discount store in Marysville who caught the two women trying to use the counterfeit bill to purchase gift cards. 

Blount County Sheriff’s deputies responded around 10:00 a.m. and spoke with one of the suspects Amanda McCormick, who claimed that she “received the one million dollar bill in the mail from a church, but could not provide the church information,” according to a report accessed by The Smoking Gun.

The other woman involved in the incident told investigators that she had no idea McCormick had the bill and was only riding along. The women were released without charges but were warned against returning to Dollar General.

The largest bill that was ever printed for public circulation in the US was a $10,000 note, according to the Federal Reserve. Despite that, stories like these are not unheard of. Back in March, police arrested a man and a woman who tried to use $100 bills at businesses in eastern Calhoun County. The Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office began receiving multiple reports of counterfeit currencies being offered in the same area. Two of the initial incidents occurred in Albion and Marshall Township, where the duo from Kalamazoo attempted to use the counterfeit money to pay for items but fled before deputies arrived, police said.

Later police were able to identify a vehicle that they were using to flee and tracked it down to a business in Emmett Township, where the pair was attempting to use fake bills again. When the deputies searched the vehicle, they found more counterfeit money, cocaine, and other drugs. The suspects, a 31-year-old man, and a 19-year-old woman, were taken to the Calhoun County jail.

According to Scrofano Law, both Federal and state laws have penalties for the crime of counterfeiting money. Under federal counterfeiting law, an individual convicted of creating, possessing, or using fake money may face a 20-year prison sentence and a $250,000 fine. Penalties vary significantly by state and the state typically imposes higher penalties for making or altering currency than it does for possession offenses. The penalties for state misdemeanor offenses are typically one year in jail plus fines. However, the sentence depends on the severity of the offense.

In case you suspect that you have received a counterfeit the United States Secret Service recommends that you do not return it right away. It further recommends that you contact your local police department or United States Secret Service field office. Authorities also advice people to limit the handling of the note and place it in a protective covering such as an envelope.