LAKEVIEW — Taboo Tabou owner Alexis Thomas is offering a $1,000 reward for anyone who turns in a couple to police who used a fake $100 bill at her store on Saturday.
"They made these fake bills to show up real when you use the counterfeit pen," Thomas said. "So when the [employee] checked it, it seemed real."
Thomas said the couple used the counterfeit bill for a $20 item and got away with $80 in change.
Aloha Poké also fell victim to the counterfeit bills over the weekend, Thomas said. The eatery, next door to Taboo Tabou, called police at the same time as its neighbor.
No suspects are in custody, but surveillance video from Taboo Tabou at 843 W. Belmont, shows the couple who used the fake bill. Anyone who shares information with the police that leads to an arrest will be offered a $1,000 reward from Thomas, she said.
CHECK OUT SECURITY FOOTAGE FROM TABOO TABOU OF THE ALLEGED COUNTERFEITERS:
Police did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Saturday's incident isn't the first time the adult toy and apparel store has acted to thwart wrongdoers. In February 2016, employees helped nab a group of teens stealing bags of merchandise from the store.
Thomas' father, Mark Thomas, former aldermanic candidate and owner of the Alley 1776, has been a frequent critic of security on the Belmont strip in the heart of Lakeview, just steps from the Belmont "L" station.
The new Target-anchored apartment building at 3200 N. Clark St. was meant to help curtail the frequent robberies and burglaries in the area, serving as what 44th Ward Ald. Tom Tunney referred to as a catalyst for improved safety and development.
The central Lakeview corridor also saw a boost in private security patrols after the Lakeview East Chamber of Commerce assumed control of the district this year.
Soon after he came to the Town Hall District in late 2016, Chicago Police Cmdr. Marc Buslik added foot patrols to Belmont Avenue and promised to have officers at the Belmont "L" station more frequently to look out for criminals taking the train.
