Uniontown man sentenced in counterfeiting case
A Uniontown man was sentenced in federal court Monday to five months in prison for making counterfeit money that he later spent in October 2001. Michael L. Smith Jr., 24, of North Gallatin Avenue Extension was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Terrence F. McVerry to five months in prison, five months home detention and three years of supervised release, according to a press release from the office of U.S. Attorney Mary Beth Buchanan.
According to court records, Smith made fifteen $20 bills that he and others passed at several retail establishments in and around the Uniontown area in early October 2001.
Smith could have received as much as five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000, the release stated.
Buchanan said the Southwestern Pennsylvania Financial Crimes Task Force, made up of United States Postal Inspectors, special agents of the Secret Service, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, investigators from the Allegheny County District Attorney’s office, and detectives from Allegheny County and the City of Pittsburgh, conducted the investigation that led to Smith’s prosecution.