Rochester Man Sentenced For Selling Counterfeit Coins

CONTACT:      Barbara Burns
PHONE:         (716) 843-5817
FAX:            (716) 551-3051

ROCHESTER, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today Timothy Meacham, 32, of Rochester, NY, who was convicted of selling counterfeit coins, was sentenced to three years probation and ordered to pay $5,184.00 in restitution by U.S. District Judge Elizabeth A. Wolford.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle Rossi, who handled the case, stated that in May 2017, Meacham posted an ad on Craigslist advertising the sale of two genuine United States gold collector coins. The defendant used a false name and concealed his phone number in the ad in order to hide his true identity. The victim, a Pennsylvania man, contacted Meacham and traveled to Rochester on May 15, 2017, at which time he purchased the counterfeit coins for $5,000.00 cash. As part of the fraud, the defendant falsely represented that the coins were authentic and had been passed to Meacham from his deceased grandfather. The defendant also falsely represented that he needed to sell the coins in order to pay for funeral expenses related to the unexpected death of a family member. Upon his return to Pennsylvania, the victim discovered that the coins were counterfeit and contacted the United States Secret Service in Rochester which began an investigation leading to the arrest of Meacham.    

The sentencing is the result of an investigation by the United States Secret Service, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Lewis Robinson.