News from Dec. 4, 2003 issue



One arrested in counterfeit case

Tellers at Farmers Bank knew something was going on. They had gotten too many counterfeit bills in the last two or three months.

"I was amazed at how many fake bills I'd been getting lately," said Joyce Travis, who is the teller supervisor for Farmers Bank, which is headquartered in Marion and has a branch in Salem.

"A lot of the bills were coming from Salem," she said.

On Monday, a Marion woman was arrested and other evidence was seized in Salem. Police say there may be more arrests in a counterfeiting case that includes four counties, maybe more.

Federal agents from the U.S. Secret Service, Kentucky State Police, Livingston County Sheriff's Department and police departments in Providence and Marion are involved in the investigation.

Marion police arrested Susan Gail Binkley, 29, of 132 Hickory Hills Dr., Monday and charged her with 22 counts of possession of a forged instrument. They say a search warrant executed at her mobile home turned up $1,050 in counterfeit bills of various denominations.

"There were 100s, 50s, 20s, and even a 10," said Marion Police Chief Kenneth Winn. "Some of them looked pretty good, but some were really bad."
Winn said Marion Police Lt. Don Perry and officers Billy Woolsey and Marty Hodge cracked the case here after several days of investigation.

The phony money seized Monday had possibly been scanned into a computer then printed on a color printer or copied on a color copier, Winn said. The money had been washed to give it a "used effect," he added.

The case started to evolve last week when Providence authorities contacted Marion police about counterfeit money that had surfaced there. They had a description of a female who was suspected in passing the bills.

Winn said some fake money had been showing up in Marion lately, too. He said Five Star Convenience Center had reported some phony money and a female from Livingston County, who was lodged in the Crittenden County Jail recently, also had in her possession a fake $100 bill.

At Farmers Bank, Travis said she has sent six counterfeit bills to federal authorities in the past three months. Prior to that, counterfeit money was rare around here.

"In the last five years I had found maybe one or two," she said. "The last few weeks, we've started getting a lot of it."

Police here say various evidence led them to Binkley, who they say also matched the physical description from Providence.

As of Tuesday, Binkley was the only individual charged, but in Livingston there may have been evidence confiscated from a residence. Marion police say a Salem man was questioned Monday night and that three computers were seized from his home.

Livingston County Sheriff Tommy Williams wouldn't disclose any information about the investigation in Salem, but he did say that so far no one had been arrested there.

"That's not to say they won't be," the sheriff added.

A spokesperson for the Secret Service regional office in Louisville said the case being investigated in Crittenden and Livingston counties is ongoing and he couldn't comment on any details until it is complete. He said local authorities may discuss the case with the media if they so desire, but it's Secret Service policy to not issue press releases on active cases.

Winn said there is reason to believe that fake money has been passed in Crittenden, Lyon, Livingston and Webster counties.

"It may be even more widespread than that," he said.

Winn said the Secret Service is the branch of the Treasury Department that investigates counterfeit cases. The agency is most commonly recognized as the organization that protects the president.

One federal agent, Steve Hampton, was in Marion Monday during the search of Binkley's home. Winn said agents would be back soon to collect all of the evidence in the case, including the fake bills.

The bank teller said counterfeit money has been turning up from various businesses, in their regular deposits. She said that when a business finds an imposter bill, they're simply out that much money. It's her responsibility to turn it over to the Secret Service.

Travis said that most businesses have pens that they use to test paper money. When a fake bill is marked with the pen, the ink turns black. If it's real, the ink disappears.

Tony James, the head cashier at Peoples Bank in Marion, said tellers there have been finding a few fake bills.

"We have not seen any counterfeit here in years, but we have been getting some this season," James said. "Counterfeit is really an uncommon thing in this community, but we're starting to see some now."

As for the woman arrested in Marion Monday, she remained in Crittenden County Jail on a $25,000 cash bond Wednesday morning. She faces 22 counts of felony possession of a forged instrument. Winn said that there was one count for each of the bills in her possession. Her case will begin with an initial court appearance in District Court, but Winn said the case will likely be moved to federal court. Anyone else charged would likely face federal indictments, he added.

Lafayette Heights on the auction block
A Crittenden County landmark will be sold at auction Saturday near Frances.
Lafayette Clubhouse, a bed and breakfast for the last two decades, will be sold by Alexander Auction Co. of Paducah. Clubhouse owners Harley and Joyce Haegelin say they're ready to retire.

"Harley is going to fish and I don't know for sure what I'm going to do, but I'm going to take it a little easier," said Joyce Haegelin, who along with her husband, a retired Air Force colonel, purchased the historic home in 1973.

An eight-bedroom structure with a commercial kitchen and large dining area, the home was built in 1925 by the Lafayette Fluorspar Co. The large home served several purposes, including a place where miners congregated for social activities. From 1933 to 1951, it also served as the private residence for J. Weldon Hina and his family. Hina was a chemist, metallurgist and safety inspector for the Lafayette Mine. In 1937, Lafayette Mine employed more than 200 workers. It was the largest fluorspar mine in the world.

U.S. Steel later owned the Lafayette Mine property and its buildings, which it sold to private interests. The building was once used as a rest home for the elderly until the Haegelins purchased it.

Joyce Haegelin said there are a couple of guests scheduled to stay at the inn through the weekend. She is willing to stay on for a while to help the new owners if it continues as a bed and breakfast. Holidays and deer season are generally booked full, Haegelin said.