TYLER, TX (KLTV) -
An Arlington man has been indicted by a federal grand jury for using counterfeit bills in several East Texas stores.
Cloyd Ray Knight III, 57, is charged with making and passing counterfeit one-hundred dollar bills. If he's convicted, he faces up to 20 years in federal prison.
According to the indictment, Knight used counterfeit one hundred dollar bills at the Target and Lowe's stores in both Tyler and Texarkana, on the same day.
Then he used a fifth counterfeit one hundred dollar bill a few days later, again at the Target in Tyler.
Authorities seized nearly two hundred items from him that are related to making counterfeit bills, including ink, paper, more than 30 printers, treasury seals, sheets of watermark security strips, and money plates.
KLTV 7 spoke with agent Robert Caltabiano with the Dallas office of the Secret Service. As part of the U.S. Treasury Department, they handle counterfeit cases.
Caltabiano couldn't offer specifics on this case, because Knight hasn't been tried yet. But, he says as a general rule, criminals aren't counterfeiting the "old" one hundred dollar bills anymore.
Caltabiano says stores put too much faith in the marker used to test large bills. All that marker checks is the paper the money is printed on, and criminals often wash real bills, then use the real paper to print fake money, so the marker won't catch those notes.
He says stores should pay more attention. If someone tries to buy an inexpensive item, or multiple gift cards, with a single one hundred dollar bill, there could be a problem.
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Cloyd Ray Knight III
WLBT 3 - Fox 40
