LOCAL : Valley Counterfeit Suspects Seized

Secret Service agents arrested five suspected counterfeiters after one of them unsuccessfully tried to pass a phony $20 bill in the San Fernando Valley, authorities said.

Special Agent Douglas Carver said the group printed an estimated $80,000 in $20 bills at an out-of-business Northridge print shop. But the suspects were arrested last week before many of the average-quality bills were passed, he said.

Abdol Hali Jalily; Marcus Martinov, 20, and Nader Korhani, 20, all of Woodland Hills, were arrested along with Jeffrey Hasselback, 21, of Northridge and Korash Sepehr, 18, of Reseda, Carver said. All were released without bail after appearing before a U.S. magistrate, except for Jalily, who was required to post $25,000 in bail.

Carver said Jalily, whose age was not available, formerly worked at the print shop and gained access to it without its owner’s knowledge. He then printed the counterfeit money and some of the bills were passed in the Woodland Hills area, Carver said.