NATION : This Name Game Goes Awry

LINCOLN, Neb. — A would-be forger tried to cash a check at a bank. Problem was: He went to the teller whose name he was using.

Freedom A. Hunter, 18, was sentenced to six months in jail Thursday after being found guilty in Lancaster County District Court of attempted second-degree forgery.

Deputy County Public Defender Mike Gooch said the scheme Hunter tried to pull off was “abysmally stupid.”

The charge against Hunter alleged that Tim Holt had reported to police that his driver’s license had been lost or stolen. Police said Hunter somehow got the license and also got a lost or stolen checkbook belonging to a Lincoln couple.

Hunter wrote one of the checks payable to Tim Holt for $275. But when he went to a drive-in bank teller to cash the check June 28, Hunter, using Holt’s driver’s license as identification, was served by Holt himself.

While Hunter awaited the cash, Holt called the police.