North Carolina woman sentenced to prison for role in counterfeit currency conspiracy in West Virginia

BECKLEY, WV (WVNS) — A North Carolina woman was sentenced to prison for conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States.

According to a press release, 24-year-old Crystal Wilks, of Lenoir, North Carolina, was sentenced on Friday, September 13, 2024 to one year and six months in prison, followed by three years of parole, and will need to pay $800 in restitution for conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States.

Wilks acknowledged her involvement in a conspiracy to make and pass counterfeit United States currency in southern West Virginia.

The press release stated that according to statements made in court, Wilks and her co-defendants 25-year-old Xavier Sanders and 33-year-old Jamarcus Harris , as well as another person, traveled to West Virginia from North Carolina on October 12, 2022 where they used counterfeit $100 bills at Beckley, Summersville, and Fayetteville businesses.

Wilks and the others spent a night at a hotel in Summersville and tried to make new counterfeit United States money. She also revealed that they tried making the counterfeit bills by bleaching $1 bills, scanning a real $100 bill, and printing the scanned image on the bleached bills.

According to the press release, 25-year-old Xavier Sanders, of Charlotte, North Carolina, pleaded guilty on November 9, 2023, to conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States and was later sentenced to five months in prison, followed by three years of parole

33-year-old Jamarcus Harris, Lenoir, North Carolina, was sentenced on February 2, 2024, to two years and nine months in prison, followed by three years of parole, and ordered to pay $800 in restitution after he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States.

The announcement was made by United States Attorney Will Thompson, who thanked the United States Secret Service for their work on the investigation.

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