Federal prosecutors in the United States confirmed that a man and a woman used bleach solution to remove ink from real banknotes. These were $1 bills that they tried to convert into counterfeit $100 bills.
The truth is that they traveled from North Carolina to West Virginia in the company of two people, including a minor. On October 12, they handed out counterfeit $100 bills in restaurants and gas stations.
As if that wasn’t enough, they also stayed at a hotel in Summersville where they laundered forty $1.00 bills. They then confirmed court documents and put them in the microwave.
According to the public prosecutor’s office, these people planned to use a printer to make more counterfeit money. For this reason, they had a printer and a scanner within easy reach in the hotel room.
In addition, they also had a bottle of “Purple Power” cleaning solution used to whiten the bills and “other tools needed to create the counterfeit bills.”
What was the procedure?
The 32-year-old defendant and the 23-year-old girl admitted to the authorities that they had forged documents. Both Lenoir residents said they washed $1 bills, scanned a real $100 bill and printed that image on the washed bills.
These citizens pleaded guilty on October 13, according to the Federal Prosecutor’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia.
In addition, a third defendant is scheduled to appear in court for a hearing on November 9th.
However, according to the indictment, the minor involved in the group’s scheme is not listed as a defendant in the case.
The defendants face prison sentences of five years and will be sentenced on January 26th. Ultimately, they could also be fined $250,000.00 each.