News & Stats
43 people indicted on theft charges related to alleged counterfeit check cashing ring in St. John Parish
The Times-Picayune ~ Thursday March 05, 2009, 3:23 PM
A St. John the Baptist Parish grand jury handed down 43 indictments and 130 counts of thefts for people involved in a counterfeit check scam, said District Attorney Tom Daley during a press conference Thursday.
The grand jury convened earlier this week in Edgard and returned the indictment charges.
Sheriff Wayne L. Jones said deputies arrested nine people this morning in relation to the scam, where a Baton Rouge woman printed out fake payroll checks from legitimate construction companies and split the cash with accomplices.
The checks, totaling about $100,000, were cashed over a four month period starting in October 2008 through January, authorities said. The checks ranged from $700 to about $2,000 each.
The woman, Chinita Phillips, 33, later confessed to printing the fake checks. She had been a former employee for a construction company.
Phillips is being held in the parish jail in LaPlace.