marked bill
{{Short description|Technique to trace money used in illegal activities}}
Marking bills is a technique used by police to trace and identify money used in illegal activities.{{cite news|last=McEnroe |first=Paul |title=Two sheriff's employees plead not guilty in FBI sting |work=Star Tribune |date=April 3, 2008 |url=http://www.startribune.com/local/stpaul/16626396.html |accessdate=2009-08-04 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080624174441/http://www.startribune.com/local/stpaul/16626396.html |archivedate=June 24, 2008 }}{{cite news| last = Calderone | first = Joe |author2=Katz, Nancie | title = $18,000 MISSING IN JUDGE STING Jurist busted in payoff, but marked bills vanish | work= NY Daily News | date = January 31, 2002 | url = http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/news/2002/01/31/2002-01-31__18_000_missing_in_judge_sti.html | accessdate = 2009-08-04}}{{Dead link|date=March 2014}} The serial numbers of the bills are recorded, and sometimes markings are made on the bank notes themselves (such as with a highlighter{{cite web | title = Enforcement Procedures: Tobacco Sales to Minors | publisher = League of Kansas Municipalities|website=lkm.org | url = http://www.lkm.org/lkmservices/samples/tobacco/PROCEDURES.doc | format = doc | accessdate = 2009-08-04}} {{Dead link|date=October 2010|bot=H3llBot}} or other writing{{cite news| title = Shoppers Get $1 Bills Marked as 'Evidence' | work= The New York Times | date = July 1, 1981 | url = https://www.nytimes.com/1981/07/01/nyregion/shoppers-get-1-bills-marked-as-evidence.html| accessdate = 2009-08-04}}).
Non-law enforcement uses of marking bills may be as simple as distinctive text{{cite news| title = Group Nabbed After Fine Paid With Marked Bills | work= NBC News| date = September 30, 2008 | url = https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna26959902 | access-date = 2010-11-26}} on the bank notes, or recording serial numbers in the event of a robbery.{{cite web | title = A Guide to Robbery Prevention and Response to Robbery | publisher = Portland Police Bureau |location=Portland, Oregon|website=portlandonline.com| date = March 26, 2008 | url = http://www.portlandonline.com/shared/cfm/image.cfm?id=31555 | format = PDF | accessdate = 2009-08-04}}