Man Arrested For Paying In $2 Bills
<div class="IPBDescription">Take that, legal tender</div> <!--QuoteBegin--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> </td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin-->PUT YOURSELF in Mike Bolesta's place. On the morning of Feb. 20, he buys a new radio-CD player for his 17-year-old son Christopher's car. He pays the $114 installation charge with 57 crisp new $2 bills, which, when last observed, were still considered legitimate currency in the United States proper. The $2 bills are Bolesta's idea of payment, and his little comic protest, too.
For this, Bolesta, Baltimore County resident, innocent citizen, owner of Capital City Student Tours, finds himself under arrest.
Finds himself, in front of a store full of customers at the Best Buy on York Road in Lutherville, locked into handcuffs and leg irons.
Finds himself transported to the Baltimore County lockup in Cockeysville, where he's handcuffed to a pole for three hours while the U.S. Secret Service is called into the case.
Have a nice day, Mike.
"Humiliating," the 57-year old Bolesta was saying now. "I am 6 feet 5 inches tall, and I felt like 8 inches high. To be handcuffed, to have all those people looking on, to be cuffed to a pole -- and to know you haven't done anything wrong. And me, with a brother, Joe, who spent 33 years on the city police force. It was humiliating."
What we have here, besides humiliation, is a sense of caution resulting in screw-ups all around.
"When I bought the stereo player," Bolesta explains, "the technician said it'd fit perfectly into my son's dashboard. But it didn't. So they called back and said they had another model that would fit perfectly, and it was cheaper. We got a $67 refund, which was fine. As long as it fit, that's all.
"So we go back and pay for it, and they tell us to go around front with our receipt and pick up the difference in the cost. I ask about installation charges. They said, 'No installation charge, because of the mix-up. Our mistake, no charge.' Swell.
"But then, the next day, I get a call at home. They're telling me, 'If you don't come in and pay the installation fee, we're calling the police.' Jeez, where did we go from them admitting a mistake to suddenly calling the police? So I say, 'Fine, I'll be in tomorrow.' But, overnight, I'm starting to steam a little. It's not the money -- it's the threat. So I thought, I'll count out a few $2 bills."
He has lots and lots of them.
With his Capital City Student Tours, he arranges class trips for school kids around the country traveling to large East Coast cities, including Baltimore. He's been doing this for the last 18 years. He makes all the arrangements: hotels, meals, entertainment. And it's part of his schtick that, when Bolesta hands out meal money to students, he does it in $2 bills, which he picks up from his regular bank, Sun Trust.
"The kids don't see that many $2 bills, so they think this is the greatest thing in the world," Bolesta says. "They don't want to spend 'em. They want to save 'em. I've been doing this since I started the company. So I'm thinking, 'I'll stage my little comic protest. I'll pay the $114 with $2 bills.'"
At Best Buy, they may have perceived the protest -- but did not sense the comic aspect of 57 $2 bills.
"I'm just here to pay the bill," Bolesta says he told a cashier. "She looked at the $2 bills and told me, 'I don't have to take these if I don't want to.' I said, 'If you don't, I'm leaving. I've tried to pay my bill twice. You don't want these bills, you can sue me.' So she took the money. Like she's doing me a favor."
He remembers the cashier marking each bill with a pen. Then other store personnel began to gather, a few of them asking, "Are these real?"
"Of course they are," Bolesta said. "They're legal tender."
A Best Buy manager refused comment last week. But, according to a Baltimore County police arrest report, suspicions were roused when an employee noticed some smearing of ink. So the cops were called in. One officer noticed the bills ran in sequential order.
"I told them, 'I'm a tour operator. I've got thousands of these bills. I get them from my bank. You got a problem, call the bank,'" Bolesta says. "I'm sitting there in a chair. The store's full of people watching this. All of a sudden, he's standing me up and handcuffing me behind my back, telling me, 'We have to do this until we get it straightened out.'
"Meanwhile, everybody's looking at me. I've lived here 18 years. I'm hoping my kids don't walk in and see this. And I'm saying, 'I can't believe you're doing this. I'm paying with legal American money.'"
Bolesta was then taken to the county police lockup in Cockeysville, where he sat handcuffed to a pole and in leg irons while the Secret Service was called in.
"At this point," he says, "I'm a mass murderer."
Finally, Secret Service agent Leigh Turner arrived, examined the bills and said they were legitimate, adding, according to the police report, "Sometimes ink on money can smear."
This will be important news to all concerned.
For Baltimore County police, said spokesman Bill Toohey, "It's a sign that we're all a little nervous in the post-9/11 world."
The other day, one of Bolesta's sons needed a few bucks. Bolesta pulled out his wallet and "whipped out a couple of $2 bills. But my son turned away. He said he doesn't want 'em any more."
He's seen where such money can lead.<!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
<a href='http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/bal-md.olesker08mar08,1,76004.column?coll=bal-local-columnists&ctrack=1&cset=true' target='_blank'>http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/bal...ack=1&cset=true</a>
I got this from Fazed, and I just had to post it here. It made me WTH out loud. It's pretty old, but I imagine people that don't live in Baltimore (like me) haven't seen it yet.
If you really wanna see the original article, use this account:
asdf@mailinator.com
interiority
It's from <a href='http://www.bugmenot.com' target='_blank'>BugMeNot</a>.
For this, Bolesta, Baltimore County resident, innocent citizen, owner of Capital City Student Tours, finds himself under arrest.
Finds himself, in front of a store full of customers at the Best Buy on York Road in Lutherville, locked into handcuffs and leg irons.
Finds himself transported to the Baltimore County lockup in Cockeysville, where he's handcuffed to a pole for three hours while the U.S. Secret Service is called into the case.
Have a nice day, Mike.
"Humiliating," the 57-year old Bolesta was saying now. "I am 6 feet 5 inches tall, and I felt like 8 inches high. To be handcuffed, to have all those people looking on, to be cuffed to a pole -- and to know you haven't done anything wrong. And me, with a brother, Joe, who spent 33 years on the city police force. It was humiliating."
What we have here, besides humiliation, is a sense of caution resulting in screw-ups all around.
"When I bought the stereo player," Bolesta explains, "the technician said it'd fit perfectly into my son's dashboard. But it didn't. So they called back and said they had another model that would fit perfectly, and it was cheaper. We got a $67 refund, which was fine. As long as it fit, that's all.
"So we go back and pay for it, and they tell us to go around front with our receipt and pick up the difference in the cost. I ask about installation charges. They said, 'No installation charge, because of the mix-up. Our mistake, no charge.' Swell.
"But then, the next day, I get a call at home. They're telling me, 'If you don't come in and pay the installation fee, we're calling the police.' Jeez, where did we go from them admitting a mistake to suddenly calling the police? So I say, 'Fine, I'll be in tomorrow.' But, overnight, I'm starting to steam a little. It's not the money -- it's the threat. So I thought, I'll count out a few $2 bills."
He has lots and lots of them.
With his Capital City Student Tours, he arranges class trips for school kids around the country traveling to large East Coast cities, including Baltimore. He's been doing this for the last 18 years. He makes all the arrangements: hotels, meals, entertainment. And it's part of his schtick that, when Bolesta hands out meal money to students, he does it in $2 bills, which he picks up from his regular bank, Sun Trust.
"The kids don't see that many $2 bills, so they think this is the greatest thing in the world," Bolesta says. "They don't want to spend 'em. They want to save 'em. I've been doing this since I started the company. So I'm thinking, 'I'll stage my little comic protest. I'll pay the $114 with $2 bills.'"
At Best Buy, they may have perceived the protest -- but did not sense the comic aspect of 57 $2 bills.
"I'm just here to pay the bill," Bolesta says he told a cashier. "She looked at the $2 bills and told me, 'I don't have to take these if I don't want to.' I said, 'If you don't, I'm leaving. I've tried to pay my bill twice. You don't want these bills, you can sue me.' So she took the money. Like she's doing me a favor."
He remembers the cashier marking each bill with a pen. Then other store personnel began to gather, a few of them asking, "Are these real?"
"Of course they are," Bolesta said. "They're legal tender."
A Best Buy manager refused comment last week. But, according to a Baltimore County police arrest report, suspicions were roused when an employee noticed some smearing of ink. So the cops were called in. One officer noticed the bills ran in sequential order.
"I told them, 'I'm a tour operator. I've got thousands of these bills. I get them from my bank. You got a problem, call the bank,'" Bolesta says. "I'm sitting there in a chair. The store's full of people watching this. All of a sudden, he's standing me up and handcuffing me behind my back, telling me, 'We have to do this until we get it straightened out.'
"Meanwhile, everybody's looking at me. I've lived here 18 years. I'm hoping my kids don't walk in and see this. And I'm saying, 'I can't believe you're doing this. I'm paying with legal American money.'"
Bolesta was then taken to the county police lockup in Cockeysville, where he sat handcuffed to a pole and in leg irons while the Secret Service was called in.
"At this point," he says, "I'm a mass murderer."
Finally, Secret Service agent Leigh Turner arrived, examined the bills and said they were legitimate, adding, according to the police report, "Sometimes ink on money can smear."
This will be important news to all concerned.
For Baltimore County police, said spokesman Bill Toohey, "It's a sign that we're all a little nervous in the post-9/11 world."
The other day, one of Bolesta's sons needed a few bucks. Bolesta pulled out his wallet and "whipped out a couple of $2 bills. But my son turned away. He said he doesn't want 'em any more."
He's seen where such money can lead.<!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
<a href='http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/bal-md.olesker08mar08,1,76004.column?coll=bal-local-columnists&ctrack=1&cset=true' target='_blank'>http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/bal...ack=1&cset=true</a>
I got this from Fazed, and I just had to post it here. It made me WTH out loud. It's pretty old, but I imagine people that don't live in Baltimore (like me) haven't seen it yet.
If you really wanna see the original article, use this account:
asdf@mailinator.com
interiority
It's from <a href='http://www.bugmenot.com' target='_blank'>BugMeNot</a>.
Comments
Bah.
Me = no planned trips to Baltimore...
With only one cashier serving...
Personally, I'd sue the living f*** out of them. No-one has the right, in any country AFAIK, to refuse legal tender. In England, it is technically suggestive treason to refuse any item with the Queen's image on it. Something about the suggestive nature with refusing to handle items bearing the image of the monarch...
I pay with 2$ bills all the damn time, I would love for them to try and arrest me just so I could laugh my **** off then sue the <!--emo&:0--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/wow.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='wow.gif' /><!--endemo--> out of them
[edit]
after reading that I'm ****, I made the statement above just from reading the title.
I go to my bank and request 2's everytime, and it's legal tender, who gives a damn if they are in sequintial order. I would have paid and walked out, if the company chooses not to take the legal currency being presented to them for services rendered, it's their damn fault
You can pay in pennies and there isn't jack the company can do but excersize their right to refuse service, but if they have already given you services and don't want your money...
[/edit]
Someone might pay in fifty cent pieces next... <!--emo&:0--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/wow.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='wow.gif' /><!--endemo-->
"Oh no, look out, he's got giant coins!"
I think have some like £5 coins somewhere, yes that's right COINS! Mwahahah. They make weird stuff like that to celebrate jubilees and royal weddings and the like I think, and I've got some lying around. No idea if a shop would accept them - but then again they'll probably be worth more than a fiver in the future anyway.
Whenever you close the store down and do your deposit, there's a space for $1, $2, $5, $10, $20, $50, $100 and $500 bills. Why the **** would they think 2 dollar bills aren't real money if it's part of your nightly deposit.
Dumb****s.
What I want to do though is buy something using the Susan B. Anthony dollars.
I'd sue for reperation, losing time, made a fool of him, and his son doesn't like 2 dollar bills anymore apparently <!--emo&:0--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/wow.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='wow.gif' /><!--endemo-->
I think have some like £5 coins somewhere, yes that's right COINS! Mwahahah. They make weird stuff like that to celebrate jubilees and royal weddings and the like I think, and I've got some lying around. No idea if a shop would accept them - but then again they'll probably be worth more than a fiver in the future anyway. <!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
They're legal tender. Issued by the royal mint. whether or not a store provides service to you for them is a different matter, though.
And didn't you have to pay more than £5 to get them anyway?
ay, he's american!
I think have some like £5 coins somewhere, yes that's right COINS! Mwahahah. They make weird stuff like that to celebrate jubilees and royal weddings and the like I think, and I've got some lying around. No idea if a shop would accept them - but then again they'll probably be worth more than a fiver in the future anyway. <!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
They're legal tender. Issued by the royal mint. whether or not a store provides service to you for them is a different matter, though.
And didn't you have to pay more than £5 to get them anyway? <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
The day I hear of a store that doesn't take all forms of legal currency that it can without overextending itself, I'll laugh my **** off.
Losing faith in American currency is loosing faith in America. Best buy destroyed his patriotism!
The land where you are not allowed to take an elephant with you into cinema. (Dont get me wrong, i wouldnt want other people to take their elephant into cinema) <!--emo&:p--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='tounge.gif' /><!--endemo-->
do you buy anything with plastic?
here in germany, we have 1,2,5,10,20,50 CENT coins 1 and 2 Euro coins and then from 5 euro bills upwards, so whats the problem with 2 dollar bills?
if you like paper for every even so small amount, then why not accept it like it is?
.01 - Lincoln
.05 - Jefferson
.10 - FDR
.25 - Washington
.50 - JFK
1.00 - Susan B. Anthony/ Sacagewea (or something like that - 'gold' coins)
$1 - Washington
$2 - Adams
$5 - Lincoln
$10 - Hamilton
$20 - Jackson
$50 - ...no idea (I don't bother asking for them either <!--emo&:p--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='tounge.gif' /><!--endemo--> [2 $20s and 1 $10])
$100 - Franklin
$500 - McKinley (never seen one )
...and then you generally need a bank beyond that. I don't think anything higher is printed anymore.
Silly nubcaek.
That, and 50¢ pieces, ooh, maybe some Susie B's too <!--emo&:p--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='tounge.gif' /><!--endemo-->
Smudge?
What the hell are they using?
Shouldn't they be using a Counterfeit-detecing pen? The kind that turns <b>brown</b> for real currency and remains <b>black</b> for fake currency?
Smudge?
What the hell are they using?
Shouldn't they be using a Counterfeit-detecing pen? The kind that turns <b>brown</b> for real currency and remains <b>black</b> for fake currency? <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
I'm not saying what they did was correct, I'm just pointing out that the fact he was paying in two dollar bills was not the reason for his arrest.
Smudge?
What the hell are they using?
Shouldn't they be using a Counterfeit-detecing pen? The kind that turns <b>brown</b> for real currency and remains <b>black</b> for fake currency? <!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I'm not saying what they did was correct, I'm just pointing out that the fact he was paying in two dollar bills was not the reason for his arrest. <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
You're right, it does make more sense that way.
The large amount of 2's only raised their eyebrows, the fact that they were in sequence was what tipped the scale and made them use whatever antiquated 14th century "smudge technology" detection system that the woman at the register had.
But when you get money straight from the bank, that really isn't extremely surprising either.
Nice, considering WalMart was the company chosen to initiate distrobution of said coins. >_>
Smudge?
What the hell are they using?
Shouldn't they be using a Counterfeit-detecing pen? The kind that turns <b>brown</b> for real currency and remains <b>black</b> for fake currency? <!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I'm not saying what they did was correct, I'm just pointing out that the fact he was paying in two dollar bills was not the reason for his arrest. <!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
You're right, it does make more sense that way.
The large amount of 2's only raised their eyebrows, the fact that they were in sequence was what tipped the scale and made them use whatever antiquated 14th century "smudge technology" detection system that the woman at the register had.
But when you get money straight from the bank, that really isn't extremely surprising either. <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
yah, there is unfortunatly no real meathod (avaliable to average people) to test the legitimacy of bills (those pens suck massively).
Basicaly all I bother doing is checking the watermark and the mag strip
(hey when you take $$ payments for sprint bills, you don't have time to check every single hundred they give you <!--emo&:p--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='tounge.gif' /><!--endemo-->)
best buy= laff
Jefferson.
my dad always gets $2 bills from the bank and occasionally someone will freak out, I think he tried to get a $500 bill from the bank too but they said they dont issue those anymore.