Counterfeit cash found during Louisville courthouse arrest leads to 30+ new charges

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A southern Indiana man was arrested on a warrant in Jefferson County court Thursday afternoon, and what he had on him at the time resulted in even more charges.

Hunter Byrnes, 29, of Charlestown, Indiana, was wanted on an outstanding warrant in Jefferson County for failure to appear in a different case. According to an arrest citation, Byrnes was putting his belongings in a bag for processing when he pulled out a "large wad of cash" from one of his pockets, putting it in the bag with his other items.

A deputy started counting the money and suspected most of it was counterfeit. According to the citation, there were three $100 bills on the outside of the wad that were real, but the 84 $100 bills inside were counterfeit, as well as 40 $20 bills.

Police said the bills had no microprinting, fibers or strips on any of the bills. Byrnes told police he was self-employed as a caregiver.

He was charged with more than 30 counts of criminal possession of a forged instrument. Byrnes is scheduled to be arraigned in court Friday morning.

The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office will hold a news conference Friday afternoon to talk about the arrest, the involvement of the U.S. Secret Service in the case and how it grew "beyond local charges," according to a news release.

Byrnes pleaded not guilty during his arraignment Friday, and set bond at $10,000 cash. His next court appearance was scheduled for Jan. 20.

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