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Counterfeit bills in ATMs. Bad copies. Man arrested.

Counterfeit bills in ATMs – printed on only one side and found last week – lead to FBI arrest of employee for an ATM-servicing firm. Counterfeit bills in two New York ATMs replaced some $11,000 in cash.

Eduardo Munoz/Reuters/File
A customer exits the lobby of JPMorgan Chase & Co. headquarters in New York in this May file photo. The discovery of counterfeit bills in ATMs in two Chase branches in New York last week has led to the arrest of a man who worked for an ATM servicing company.

  • By Associated Press
NEW YORK

Authorities say a man accused of stuffing amateurish counterfeit bills in ATMs of two midtown Manhattan banks has been arrested.

The FBI said Gene Carlo Pena was arrested at Kennedy Airport Monday afternoon.

WNBC-TV reports he returned voluntarily from the Dominican Republic. FBI said Pena worked for a company that serviced the ATMs.

He faces embezzlement and other charges.

It wasn't immediately clear if he had a lawyer.

The bills were discovered last week at two Chase branches — on 57th Street and on Ninth Avenue. The banks were short a total of some $11,000.

The counterfeit bills were blank on one side. Authorities believe they were meant to trick the ATM into believing it was carrying a full complement of cash.

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