It seems some folks have been passing Monopoly money around town as real currency.

Well, maybe the fake cash is a little bit more realistic than Monopoly money. All the same, it’s illegal, and police are asking Lawrence businesses to keep an eye out for counterfeit bills, specifically $100 bills, being passed around.

Thursday morning the Lawrence Police Department tweeted out a photo from the U.S. Currency Education Program, which elaborates a few ways to identify real American money.

We are asking all area businesses to verify the authenticity of $100 bills they receive. We have seen a rash of counterfeits being passed. pic.twitter.com/cR96cS0QYD

— Lawrence Police (@LawrenceKS_PD) January 12, 2017

In fact, not long ago a Topeka man was arrested by Lawrence police after they say he passed around some fake bills.

Michael Andrew Baum, 30, was arrested Dec. 29. According to a criminal complaint filed in Douglas County District Court he faces four felony counts of making false information and four misdemeanor counts of theft.

Baum is accused of passing fake $100 bills over the course of several months at different Lawrence businesses, according to an arrest affidavit filed in Douglas County District Court.

An arrest affidavit is a document filed by police explaining the grounds for an arrest. Allegations in the document still must be proved in court.

The affidavit alleges that Baum passed the bad money last summer at both Wal-Mart, 550 Congressional Drive, and Dillons, 4701 W. Sixth St. During the transactions he would pay for relatively inexpensive items with the fake bills and receive change back in legitimate cash.

Upon closer inspection, police noticed the fake bills passed by Baum were obviously counterfeit, the affidavit says.

At least four of the bills had the same serial number (PR 10008679 P), the affidavit says. Some printing on the bills had also been marked with a pen or marker and “on the front of the bills was the print “THIS NOTE IS NOT LEGAL, IT IS TO BE USED FOR MOTION PICTURES.”

In addition, the back of the bills showed the markings “IN HIM WE TRUST,” the affidavit says. “There was no ‘USA 100’ security thread embedded in the bill. There was no color shifting ink on the 100 on the face of the notes.”

In part, investigators were able to identify Baum by working with Wal-Mart and Dillons employees and studying security footage, the affidavit says.

Baum was arrested and booked into jail. He was released on Jan. 4 after posting a $10,000 bond.

Baum is scheduled to appear in court on Feb. 24 for a preliminary hearing. There a judge will determine if enough evidence exists to order him to stand trial.

I report on crime and courts for the Journal-World. I can be reached by email at cswanson@ljworld.com, by phone at (785) 832-7284 or on Twitter @Conrad_Swanson.