Cypress : College Employee Faces Counterfeiting Charges
A federal grand jury in Los Angeles issued a two-count indictment Friday against a Cypress College employee in connection with a series of counterfeit $20 bills he is accused of making at the college print shop.
The indictment alleged that Stephen Scott Sebastian, 24, of Garden Grove, manufactured and possessed $49,000 in $20 bills. He was arrested June 5 by Secret Service agents, who seized the fake bills at the print shop and at Sebastian’s home.
The agents obtained a search warrant after two janitors reported finding the currency.
Ellyn Marcus Lindsay, the assistant U.S. attorney prosecuting the case, said that if convicted, Sebastian could face up to 30 years in prison and be fined up to $500,000.
James Bates, Sebastian’s attorney, said Friday that he was unaware that the indictment had been issued. However, he said that Sebastian was not trying to print money and that the whole scheme was a joke.
“They didn’t find any money,” Bates said. “They were just pieces of paper that didn’t look anything like money. It was more like Monopoly money.”
Marcus Lindsay said Sebastian will be arraigned next week.
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