Man faces charges after allegedly switching real money for counterfeit in bait and switch scheme
By Ethan Smith
Published in News on August 4, 2017 10:47 AM
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James Leonard Stewart
A man is facing charges after pulling a bait and switch on someone with counterfeit money in June.
James Leonard Stewart III, 33, of 388-B Weaver Road, reportedly took real money from someone when they bought something from him, then swapped the money for counterfeit cash at the scene of the exchange and convinced the victim the money that was given to him wasn't real.
The person then paid Stewart again.
Stewart is charged with possession of a counterfeit instrument, uttering a forged instrument and obtaining property by false pretense.
Stewart was charged by Detective Sgt. Richard Farfour while in the Lenoir County Jail on other charges. He was given a $10,000 secured bond.
Farfour declined to go into specifics about how Stewart obtained the counterfeit money, or exactly how the money involved in this case was counterfeited.
Farfour also declined to say how much money was taken from the victim of the scheme.