Racine police say a woman tried to cash in a fake pull tab at an area bar because didn’t have any money and needed a little help.
Phyllis Scholz, 56, of Racine, was charged Thursday in Racine County Circuit Court with one misdemeanor 
count of fraud, false representation. If convicted, she faces up to 4-1/2 months in jail and/or up to $5,000 in fines.
According to the criminal complaint, police were called 5:35 p.m. Wednesday to Pepi’s on 6th Street for a report of a woman who tried to cash in a fake $100 pull tab. Witnesses told officers they dip winning tabs in water to be sure they’re legitimate, and when they performed the test on the tab Scholz gave them, the pieces separated, alerting them to the scam.
Police say Scholz at first said she’d come to the bar for a beer and that she purchased two pull tabs, and one of them was a winner. When officers told her the tab was a fake, she admitted that she got it from friend but refused to name that person. Scholz told police that she doesn’t have a lot of money and just “wanted a little to help her out.”
Scholz remained in the Racine County Jail as of Thursday evening on a $1,000 signature bond. She will next be in court Feb. 4 for a pre-trial conference.