Jury Finds Vallejo Man Guilty of Passing Counterfeit Currency

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A federal jury found John Lamont Winn, 53, of Vallejo, guilty today of passing counterfeit $100 bills, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, on June 13, 2017, Winn and two associates passed approximately $6,600 over six transactions in less than one hour at a casino in Lincoln, California. Those bills were detected as counterfeit by the casino’s bank. On June 16, 2017, Winn and another associate passed approximately $29,200 in counterfeit currency at two banks in Vallejo. The bills were held aside by the bank on the basis of their appearance, and they were later determined by the Secret Service to be counterfeit.

This case is the product of an investigation by the United States Secret Service. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew G. Morris and Quinn Hochhalter are prosecuting the case.

Winn is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Troy L. Nunley on August 2, 2018. Winn faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.