Deputies arrest trio for passing fake bills at UTC Mall

Everything about holiday shopping is not full of joy.

On Monday, the Sarasota County Sheriff's Office issued a report about the arrest of a woman and two teens from Orlando for passing counterfeit bills at the Macy's located at University Town Center on Friday.

A Sheriff's Office report said "that deputies were alerted to suspicious activity around 1 a.m., when loss prevention reported the trio had used several counterfeit $100 bills to purchase Michael Kors handbags."

Two teenagers were arrested along with 27-year-old Sena Howell, who agreed to a search of her vehicle where deputies discovered additional merchandise purchased earlier that evening at the Target store in the 5300 block of Fruitville Road, Sarasota. Howell was charged with three counts of "Uttering Counterfeit Bills." The two teens each were charged with one count. Additional charges are pending.

Detectives are continuing to investigate and believe the trio may have used counterfeit bills at several other stores in the Sarasota area.