Last updated March 29, 2007 11:12 p.m. PT

3 arrested over $3,000 in counterfeit bills

Three counterfeiters from Eastern Washington had been using not-so-sophisticated equipment to produce about $3,000 in counterfeit bills that fooled sales clerks in the Seattle area until they were caught this week, police said Thursday.

Bellevue police arrested a 27-year-old man from East Wenatchee and two 22-year-old Cashmere women after they passed phony $50 bills at stores in Seattle, Everett, Lynnwood and Bellevue Square.
Police said the suspects, who are expected to be charged with forgery today, started their counterfeiting scheme after buying an Epson All-In-One printer, which they used to reproduce the bills. The machine, which is sold on Best Buy's Web site for $69.

99, scans, copies and prints.
A female suspect had experience passing counterfeit currency, authorities said, and the trio checked into an Everett hotel Sunday. It was there that police said they dipped about five dozen $5 bills in a bucket containing chemicals that removed the ink.

The group then scanned a $50 bill and used the printer to print the bill's images where the $5 images had been.
And some of the 2001 series counterfeit bills are still out there, all with serial number CB44346475A.
"They might get to the bank before anyone notices," Bellevue police spokesman Greg Grannis said.

"But the bank would be able to detect a counterfeit."
Because the correct paper was used, the fake bills sneaked past counterfeit bill detection pens. The Eastern Washington crew planned to continue their spree at Westfield Southcenter in Tukwila before being caught, police said.

"They probably came over here because if you dropped $3,000 in a small town in $50 bills, people would notice," Grannis said.
Police said the suspects bought a video game at GameStop, some lotions at Victoria Secret and a Jamba Juice smoothie before entering Bellevue Square's Club Libby Lu -- a style store for teenage girls.