Matthew James Wilson, 56, of Wyoming, Michigan, is charged in Minnesota District Court with counterfeiting of currency and theft.<\/p>\n
The case was filed in Kittson County District Court under court file number 35-CR-26-58.<\/p>\n
According to the criminal complaint, the incident happened on February 3, 2026, at the Dollar General<\/a> in Karlstad.<\/p>\n Prosecutors allege Wilson used counterfeit United States currency to place money onto a prepaid card.<\/p>\n The complaint says Ann Johnson, the store manager, contacted the Kittson County Sheriff\u2019s Office on February 4.<\/p>\n Johnson reported that a man had used suspected counterfeit paper currency the night before.<\/p>\n Store employee Romeo Lebiecki told investigators the man requested help at the register.<\/p>\n The man allegedly asked to load cash onto a prepaid Green Dot Visa card.<\/p>\n Jonathan Harris also helped with the transaction, according to the complaint.<\/p>\n The complaint says $150 was placed onto the card. A $3.95 fee was also charged.<\/p>\n Johnson later took the cash to Prime Security Bank in Karlstad.<\/p>\n A bank worker checked the money with a machine used to detect counterfeit bills.<\/p>\n The complaint says nine $10 bills were rejected by the machine.<\/p>\n Amy Wangert examined the bills and said they were fake.<\/p>\n She said the printing appeared faded and grainy, according to the complaint.<\/p>\n The remaining money was found to be real United States currency.<\/p>\n Investigators said the man gave store workers a story about the money.<\/p>\n He allegedly said the cash came from an uncle who had stored it for years.<\/p>\n He also claimed the bills had been exposed to mothballs.<\/p>\n Dollar General loss prevention staff told investigators the same man was linked to similar cases.<\/p>\n The complaint says those cases involved stores in Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Iowa.<\/p>\n Investigators also reviewed information from Ada, Minnesota, and Watertown, South Dakota.<\/p>\n According to the complaint, Wilson was identified through financial records and image comparison.<\/p>\n Records from Green Dot allegedly showed the card used in Karlstad was tied to Matthew Wilson.<\/p>\n The complaint says the card ZIP code matched a Michigan location.<\/p>\n The counterfeiting charge cites Minnesota Statute 609.632<\/a>.<\/p>\nStore Reported Suspicious Cash<\/h2>\n
Bank Found Nine Fake Bills<\/h2>\n
Similar Cases Reported In Other States<\/h2>\n
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