To the naked eye, many would assume these bills were fresh, new $100 bills. Since the design has changed, the bills were expected to be harder to counterfeit. Thanks to Gortney’s training as a cashier, she spotted the fake bills right away and turned them over to authorities. (Photo provided)

FORT WAYNE — Two Syracuse locals were thankful for their quick thinking and quick driving during a Craigslist sale gone wrong on Monday, March 14.

Alyssa Gortney and boyfriend Andrew Custer, both of Syracuse, decided to utilize the ever-popular Craigslist to sell a few items they didn’t need. One of those items, an iPhone 5S, earned them a purchase bid of $200, but the couple had to meet the interested party out in Fort Wayne to complete the sale. Gortney said she felt pretty secure with the whole idea, as they have used the site multiple times to sell various items, and both parties agreed to meet at Glenbrook Mall — a public place.

Gortney and Custer were in text message contact with the purchasing party, who asked the couple come to the front of Barnes and Noble to complete the transaction. As the couple walked up to the building, Gortney said she was immediately put-off by the fact that the driver and passenger chose to stay inside the running car instead of exiting the vehicle. As she handed over the phone to allow the passenger to inspect it, the driver nervously handed over $200 in rolled up cash, split into two $100 bills. Custer questioned aloud whether the bills were fake as Gortney began to hold them up to the sun.

As she did this, the passenger quickly alerted the driver to leave and the pair sped off. Custer communicated to Gortney that they had just been robbed, prompting the couple to jump in their own car and speed off after the young criminals. The Syracuse couple caught up with the thiefs in the parking lot of Cheddar’s, a nearby restaurant, effectively blocking the pair from leaving. As Gortney walked up to the driver’s side window, the male occupant rolled down the window and handed over the phone.

Gortney snapped a photo of the bills before turning them over to mall security, who handed the case over to local police. She said she had her boyfriend and her background to thank for the quick-thinking. As a Martin’s cashier for six years, Gortney had the insight to hold the bills up to the light. And although the colors were close to perfect, the watermark was misplaced and some of the other identifying marks were missing. Custer also noticed the difference between counterfeit and real because of the paper-like texture of the bills.

“Luckily we got our stuff back,” noted Gortney, “and hopefully it scared them enough that they don’t do it again.” Custer even received a text message apology from the driver after the incident was over. Car make and model, phone numbers of the young men and license plate numbers were all collected at the scene and passed on to authorities.