Holiday shopping lines were a tempting target for counterfeiters in the Lawrence area, according to Douglas County District Attorney Charles Branson.

Branson said his office heard of several attempts to pass counterfeit bills at stores where clerks faced long lines and the pressure to keep customers moving.

In that instance “you don’t have a whole lot of time to determine whether a bill is genuine,” Branson said. “It’s an opportunity for crooks to make a quick buck.”

Though most business owners said they didn’t have a problem with counterfeiting recently, Lawrence police have reported a number of crimes involving counterfeiting in the last six months.

In that time, Lawrence police reported counterfeit bills were passed at a grocery store, a bar and restaurants.

To help fight the problem, Branson’s office has put together a flier designed to educate business owners on how to detect counterfeit currency. His office is working with the Lawrence Chamber of Commerce to come up with a way to get the information to business owners.

Branson said the fliers probably would be distributed electronically with other chamber information.

One Lawrence business is taking its own steps to avoid becoming the next victim.

McDonald’s of Lawrence has installed two DollarMate machines at each of its stores in order to make sure the money it’s accepting is genuine, said Patrick Manning, marketing specialist for the local McDonald’s franchise.

McDonald's restaurants in Lawrence have started using DollarMate scanners to avoid accepting counterfeit bills.

The franchise tested the scanners at the 1309 W. Sixth St. location last summer before deciding to expand the program to all 14 of its locations. In addition to locations in Lawrence, McDonald’s of Lawrence owns restaurants on the Kansas Turnpike and in De Soto.

Though the company declined to discuss what sort of investment the scanners required, Tellermate, which makes the DollarMate, said the machines retail for about $200. At that price, McDonald’s spent about $5,600 to equip all of its stores. Manning said the new machines had been successful.

“This past holiday season we’ve seen a real decrease in the amount of counterfeit money coming through our company,” he said. “This is a faster, easier way for the managers and crews to check for counterfeit bills.”

Sgt. Dan Ward of the Lawrence Police Department said over time he’s seen an increase in the amount of counterfeit money being passed.

“With the advent of high-end computers and printers, it’s certainly becoming more common,” Ward said. “Traditionally, you have a flow come through and then it dies down and you have another flow come through.

“We have some officers who have special training with counterfeiting who give talks to businesses and banks.”

The Secret Service, which is charged with investigating all instances of counterfeiting in the country, reports that in fiscal year 2005 nearly $115 million in counterfeit U.S. currency was seized.