Philadelphia Man Indicted For Passing $17,900 In Counterfeit Money

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that a Philadelphia man was indicted late yesterday by a federal grand jury in Harrisburg on a charge of allegedly passing counterfeit $100 bills in four central Pennsylvania counties between October 2014 and March 2015.

According to United States Attorney Peter Smith, Harvey Blake, age 46, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania was charged in a one count indictment with passing $17,900 in counterfeit $100 bills in Dauphin, Franklin, York and Cumberland Counties. The bills were allegedly used to purchase merchandise at Home Depot, Lowes and Walmart stores in the four counties.

The case was investigated by the Harrisburg office of the United States Secret Service, and the police departments of Lower Paxton Township, Swatara Township, and Hampden Township, as well as the loss prevention personnel for the affected stores. Prosecution of the case has been assigned to Assistant United States Attorney William A. Behe.

Indictments are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.

A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.

The maximum penalty under federal law is 20 years of imprisonment on each count, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant's educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.

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