Police warn: do not pick up bills you find on the ground, it can kill you

By

Burke

Tennessee authorities have warned citizens not to pick up folded dollar bills found on the street or in public places because they may contain fentanyl, a deadly drug even in trace amounts.

The Perry County Sheriff's Office warned of two incidents in which

was detected on folded bills found on the floor of a gas station.

The powder was tested and tested positive for methamphetamine and fentanyl, the sheriff's office said in a Facebook statement.

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A folded dollar bill containing fentanyl and methamphetamine, found on the floor of a gas station. Perry County Sheriff's Office.

“This is very dangerous, friends!

Please share and teach your children not to collect money,” said Sheriff Nick Weems.

“I plan to push for a bill that increases the punishment for those caught using the money to transport the poison.

It infuriates me as a parent and as a sheriff that people can act so carelessly and have no concern for the well-being of others, especially a child,” he added.

Weems said the sheriff's office is looking for the person responsible.

Authorities did not immediately respond Tuesday to a request for comment from our sister network NBC News.

The warning was also shared by the Giles County Sheriff's Office, which told people to "be alert and be safe."

The bureau, located about 80 miles from Perry County, said even a small amount of mixed fentanyl is enough to kill anyone who comes into contact with it.

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Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid drug that is up to 100 times stronger than morphine and 50 times stronger than heroin, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said.

Powdered fentanyl is commonly mixed with heroin, methamphetamine, and other drugs and is extremely dangerous.

The CDC has said that