Florida Women Arrested in Check Forgery Scheme
Two Florida women who say they were recruited to join a cross-country fraudulent check-cashing scheme have been arrested in Montana.
The Billings Gazette reports 29-year-old Tiffany Denise Dale and 39-year-old Catherine Linn Tucker of Dania Beach, Florida, were arrested Wednesday in Billings. They made an initial appearance in Justice Court on Thursday, where bail was set at $500,000 each.
They face charges of felony forgery, common scheme.
Prosecutors say the women were arrested after trying to pass a forged check for $2,350 at the drive-up window at a Stockman Bank branch. The teller became suspicious and called police.
Deputy Yellowstone County Attorney Margaret Gallagher says the women are believed to have cashed forged checks for about $30,000 in Yellowstone County and that banks in Bozeman, Belgrade and Great Falls also may have been defrauded.