Counterfeit money suspect on surveillance

D'IBERVILLE, Miss. (WALA) - Police said several stores in D’Iberville have become the targets of a counterfeiter; the suspect hit two stores yesterday, one of which was a Wal-Mart, just off I-10.

“Wal-Mart's been inundated with counterfeit money and this is the first time we've been able to get somebody on video passing the money,” said Lieutenant Terry Hines of the D’Iberville Police Department.

Investigators said an observant cashier double-checked some money that the suspect customer handed her.  He became nervous and left.

“He said, ‘I'll be right back. Let me get my debit card.’  And he never came back into the store,” said Hines.

Hines said the suspect disappeared from sight on surveillance video, but reappeared a block from the police station, trying to pass fake money at the Dollar Tree.

Again, a conscientious cashier began to check the money and the man left.

Police released several photos of the suspect, suddenly realizing the same man may have committed multiple crimes in the area.

“No this is not the first time, we've actually -- find video -- after we were able to identify him as a suspect going back through other counterfeit cases and we actually found him passing some currency back in August,” said Hines.

It must have been the august heat that drove the suspect into a local ice cream shop, where his crime spree may have begun.

“He came in just like any other customer would, ordered a Snowball -- 16 ounce Snowball, I went and made it up, rang it all up,” said Marc Wyatt, owner of the Ice Cream & More shop in D’Iberville.

Wyatt said he always checks money that customers hand him; he holds it up to the light to try and see the watermark.

“I didn't see it so I hold it up to my other light because my eye sight ain't the best and he said: something wrong with it? And I said it don't look to be real.

Wyatt said that's when the suspect said he has more money in his truck and walked outside, never to return.

The suspect left his snowball behind, and Wyatt's surveillance cameras captured his image.

Police say they are receiving a number of calls about potential suspects and say they are close to an arrest.

D’Iberville Police said the man could be charged locally for uttering forgery, if he meets a certain threshold he could also face federal charges.