Local counterfeit printing operation busted

Bills were of “surprisingly good quality”

By FRITZ MAYER

MONTICELLO, NY — Executing a no-knock warrant, law enforcement officials brought a counterfeiting operation in Livingston Manor to an abrupt end in the early hours of October 23. At a news conference the next day, Sullivan County Sheriff Mike Schiff said the two people who were arrested, Abigail Lager, 27, and Jose Byron, 34, put up no resistance, and did not speak other than to invoke their right to see a lawyer.

Detective Jason Gorr said the couple, who lived at 181 Cattail Road, used a personal computer to make the bills. They also used other expensive equipment, but to prevent giving other would-be counterfeiters advice on how to break the law, the officers would not be more specific. Lager and Byron were sent to Sullivan County Jail without bail.

The bills came in all denominations from one dollar to $100. Schiff said members of the U.S. Secret Service, who were involved in the investigation, were surprised to see so many different denominations. Schiff said the bills were of surprisingly good quality, even the fifties, which are laced with multiple colors. “They managed to get all the colors right,” he said.

Detective Don Starner said the couple was selling $500 worth of counterfeit bills to associates for $100. The associates would then pass the counterfeits to businesses in the community and perhaps in other counties. The investigation is ongoing, and officers are trying to identify those who passed the bills.

Detectives were tipped off to the operation by a couple of incidents. On September 21, a citizen attempted to pass a counterfeit $50 to bail a friend out if jail. Officer’s interviewed the individual to discover where the bill was obtained and determined that the individual had no connection with the counterfeiters.

In another incident on October 22, a sergeant from the sheriff’s office responded to a report of a large amount of money on a road in Swan Lake. The sergeant found 25 counterfeit $50 bills, which were linked to Lager and Byron.

When officers went into the couple’s home, they confiscated $22,000 in phony bills and $2,000 in legitimate cash.

Businesses or individuals who get stuck with counterfeit money are not reimbursed when authorities confiscate the money. “Given the economy in Sullivan County, a merchant or citizen who gets stuck with a phony $50 dollar bill experiences a real hardship,” said Schiff. “I am relieved that we were able to put these people out of business.”

Go to www.secretservice.gov for information on how to detect a phony bill.