New Tampa residents should be wary of a counterfeit cash scam that has occurred in the area.

According to the Tampa Police Department (TPD), an elderly woman was scammed out of $5,425 by two unknown female suspects in the parking lot of either the Lowe’s or CVS Pharmacy on Commerce Palms Blvd.

TPD says that the suspects showed the woman a wallet that they had “found” full of counterfeit bills. Claiming to have worked at a nearby store where there was a counterfeit “machine,” the suspects convinced the victim that the manager of that store would exchange counterfeit bills for real cash at the store’s bank, but needed real cash to replace the amount going to the bank.

The victim agreed and took the suspects in her car to her residence and gave them the same amount of real money before taking the suspects to the store where the so-called “exchange” would take place. She was instructed to park next to a large van, blocking her view of the front of the store and waited for the suspects to return.

One of the suspects came up to the victim’s window and instructed her to go to the rear of the store to receive her money from the store’s manager, which she did, only to discover that the whole thing was a scam.

The victim reported the scam and TPD is investigating. The public is urged to be on the lookout for two African-American females, one between the ages of 30-49, the other between the ages of 50-64, driving a goldbrown Toyota or Chevy midsize vehicle with unknown tags.

Anyone with any information should call TPD at 931-6500.