I say principal rules in any case. If someone is wrong they should be held accountable. Use your connections and get the guy.

There's nothing worse than having spent time with someone, shared a couple of cocktails and then realized the bills were useless just as you were in line to spend one of them. Some charmers out in the world aren't there? : )

contrary to what we've seen in the movies and on Tv, paper does NOT hold fingerprints very well.

And if this fellow has no record and has never been printed, where are you?

And even if he did, isn't it his word against yours?  And you might not want to expalin how he came to give these bills to you?

Why would he harass you?  He scammed you, do you think he's going to return to the scene of the crime?

He richly deserves having his life turned into a hell.  

You probably don't have his prints, depending on how well that ink and paper holds them.  However, you have a picture of the guy.  His high school story was probably bogus. If that bogus money has circulated anywhere else (presumably he didn't manufacture it himself) the FBI and Secret Service is going to be really interested in finding him.  

However, you should probably consult a lawyer before this and weigh your possible exposure to LE against your satisfaction at nailing him.  Just remember, different agencies of LE don't talk to each other very well.  That's how 9/11 happened.  The feds aren't likely to tell local LE, and local LE is not likely to pay attention if they do.

So many people would avoid a scandal or timely pursuit of someone like this, and so many of these guys get away with it because of these trends. I say, "Go for it, if you want, and help nab the bas__ard!  

Hugs,
Ciara

YOU MAY WANT TO CONSIDER THAT HE MIGHT BE UNAWARE THAT THEY'RE BOGUS BILLS-A VICTIM OF SOMEONE ELSE

If they raid his house and place of biz and find the plates...that's all they need.

-Hoot.

providers have social duties too, and I seriously doubt that the Treasury Dept is going to be worried about escorting next to counterfeiting.

You aren't the only person he's passed bills to, and he's burning all of us.  

Talk to your cop friends and maybe a lawyer about how to handle it so it minimizes your exposure, but it's important that they get DIRECTLY in the hands of the FBI together with everything you know about him.

before doing the acts. The guy has scammed you, there is nothing that you can do about him without generating questions about your activities in getting into the situation. Count the experience as a lesson and move on.

Before you read the rest of this consider this point of safety. Counterfeiter’s are not generally affiliated with the Boy Scouts. For safety’s sake I’d caution you to think about who you might meet with if you blew the whistle.

But for now, let's assume that this guy really did knowingly pass phony currency. I’d like to know why do you say that? What proof do you have? This is important. Were these obvious fakes (printed on a home inkjet)?

The reason I point this out is that if you turn over the other 12 bills - presumably you'd not send them the bill you touched - how can you be certain, or more the point, how can you prove that he wasn't a victim too?

Why is this important? Because even if you have LE friends, remember that the Secret Service will want to talk to them too. So think of the poor cop from DC or any other city or town who does you a favor and then the next thing you know, he is being called in for a "chat" in his Captain's office regarding an "anonymous" tip that they mysteriously traced back to him.

My point being is that if this is a true fake bill, the Secret Service will not want to make a case against a citizen unless they are either a big fish or unless the case can be proven with a minimum of effort. Remember, the Special Agents are accountable for the cost of an arrest. If they arrest someone who is not convictable, well.... they take a personal credibility hit. Based on the evidence you have, it would be hard to convict such a person. Yes, it is a crime to pass phony currency but juries only convict the counterfeiter’s themselves. As of right now, all you have is someone who passed a bad bill not someone who created it. The Government is more interested in the guy who minted the bill rather than the guy who used the bill.

Just my $0.02. And it's that’s counterfeit – it’s too expensive to counterfeit coins.

-- Modified on 1/8/2006 6:53:32 PM