Mobile police nab 2 on counterfeiting charges, display funny money

By Brendan Kirby, Press-Register 

MOBILE, Alabama – Police today said they have arrested 2 women suspected of making hundreds of dollars’ worth of counterfeit currency and are pursuing other suspects.
Police declined to reveal the suspects’ names but displayed $752 in counterfeit money they seized from the home of one of the women, along with an HP printer that investigators say produced the bills.
“It appears simple, but it’s significant,” said Officer Chris Levy, a spokesman for the Mobile Police Department.
Levy said police made the first arrest on Monday after developing a suspect who they believe spent counterfeit money at a Quality Inn motel.
At a news conference at the Mobile office of the U.S. Secret Service, investigators showed off the small-denomination bills, which ranged in quality from bills that were difficult to distinguish from the genuine article to obvious fakes in the middle of white sheets of paper.
“Those all look like she was practicing,” said Sgt. Paul Soulier, the supervisor of the Police Department’s financial crimes detail.
Soulier said police noticed a dramatic increase in counterfeit bills in the last month. He said investigators have traced $1,600 in phony money that has been spent at area businesses, ranging from fast food restaurants to convenience stores.
Soulier said the suspect made the genuine-looking money from the relatively inexpensive, standard copier.
“And, there’s nothing special about the paper that was used,” he said.
A close comparison of the fakes and real money reveals telltale signs showing the funny money to be counterfeit. The fake bills lack the security fibers of real money, holographic images on some denominations and color changes.
Levy said police believe some 25 counterfeiting cases can be traced back to the counterfeiters. He said authorities continue to investigate and believe other crimes – including a robbery – may be tied to the counterfeiting operation.
He said it appears that the counterfeiters make money for their personal use. He said that fake $1 bills, a denomination that is rarely counterfeited because the cost of doing so exceeds the value, suggests that the counterfeiters may even have been planning to spend bogus bills on school lunches.
The arrests are the result of a joint investigation by the police, state probation officers and the Secret Service. Soulier said federal authorities plan to prosecute the cases.
He also said that the person who lived in the home that police raided was on probation for an offense she committed while she was a youthful offender.