A man handed over a fake one million dollar bill at a supermarket in Pittsburgh Saturday and asked for change.

BBC News was told by police at the scene that the unidentified man became abusive when a manager at the Giant Eagle supermarket confiscated the counterfeit note. He brandished a scanner gun and broke an electronic payment machine.

The suspect, who was not carrying any identification, refused to give his name and was charged with forgery and criminal damage.

"The John Doe [unidentified male] became irate when staff refused to change his $1 million bill and damaged a piece of equipment. Officers arrested him", Pittsburgh police spokeswoman Diane Richard told BBC News.

Since 1969, the largest bill in circulation in the U.S. is $100.

Police believe the fake $1 million bill may have originated from a religious group, based in Dallas, who last year distributed thousands of religious pamphlets with a picture of President Grover Cleveland on a $1 million bill.

The suspect is currently being detained at Allegheny County Jail.