PASCO COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) — Pasco County deputies made a traffic stop on Tuesday for a suspected stolen car in Dade City on US 301, but found much more than just that.
Deputies also uncovered a printer, forged checks, stolen IDs and stolen credit cards.
Detectives investigating the case believe Mickey Curtis Bearden, 33, was using the printer to mass produce forged checks.
“Everything that you need for a forgery was bought at an Office Depot,” Detective Spencer Hubbell said.
The detective believes the checks could have been easily passed off to an unsuspecting business owner.
“If he went into a mom and pop store and you were to try and cash them, they might not think twice about it with the proper ID,” said Hubbell.
Among the checks, detectives discovered some with a business logo from CompuMAX from Dade City.
The small computer service store has been in business in Dade City for more than 30 years, selling and servicing computers. The owners had no idea their logo had been copied on to forged checks.
“I was surprised yesterday when the deputy called to ask me about that and all I can say is, I thank God that nothing was stolen from us. We didn’t have any draws on our accounts,” said owner Debbie Larkin.
Detectives have charged Bearden with 32 counts of forgery and other charges related to his operation.
The Pasco Sheriff’s Office is asking anyone who believes they may have been victimized by a forged check recently to contact them immediately.STORIES OTHERS ARE CLICKING ON:
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