Police say thousands of dollars’ worth of counterfeit bills are making their way through stores in the Halifax area.

There have been at least 15 reported cases of someone using fake $50 American bills to pay for items at Halifax shops since last Wednesday.

“There’s a large number of them and the losses are in the thousands of dollars. These bills are good quality bills,” says Const. Pierre Bourdages of the Halifax Regional Police.

Police say businesses in a number of shopping areas were targeted and several thousand dollars’ worth of counterfeit bills were used.

“We’re talking about large purchases in at least 15 different businesses in Halifax, Spryfield, Dartmouth,” says Halifax Regional Police Const. Pierre Bourdages. “We’ve got grocery store, big-box store, electronics, a number of businesses where these fake bills have started to appear.”

Investigators believe the incidents are all connected.

Police are urging businesses to take a close look at all cash before accepting it, and to call police if they have come into contact with counterfeit money.

“If you’re unsure if a bill is fake or not, you have the option to refuse to accept it, and also you can call police and ask an officer to come down and have a look at it,” says Bourdages.