ST. GEORGE — A man accused of possessing counterfeit bills was arrested by Washington County Sheriff’s deputies on warrants issued out of northern Utah Tuesday evening.
Domonic Worley, 21, of Mesquite, Nevada, was taken into custody after a background check revealed an active no-bail warrant was issued by 4th District Court in Juab County stemming from Worley’s failure to appear in court.
The defendant faces six third-degree felony counts of possessing a forgery/writing device.
The charges are the result of a Dec. 18 traffic stop in Juab County. During a search of his car, police found “multiple” bills in different denominations that were determined to be counterfeit, according to the probable cause statement filed in support of his arrest.
The currency “bore a striking resemblance to actual money,” the arresting deputy wrote in the statement.
The defendant allegedly told officers he had the money because he was using it to shoot a music video, explaining that he crumpled up some of the bills to make them appear like “pocket change” and was planning to use the crumpled bills to “make it rain money” during the video.
When pressed, police say the defendant admitted that he had not shot a music video.
The case was filed three weeks later, and the defendant appeared in 4th District Court in Nephi for a waiver hearing April 9 but failed to appear for a preliminary hearing June 25, according to court records.
One month earlier, the Lehi City Justice Court issued a $6,000 cash-only warrant for Worley’s arrest after he failed to appear for a pretrial conference scheduled May 20 on a case involving 19 misdemeanor counts of theft. Court records indicate the alleged theft offenses took place Sept. 17.
Worley is currently being held at Purgatory Correctional Facility in Hurricane. A transport order was filed in Juab County Wednesday. Once signed, the defendant will be transported from Southern Utah to Juab County Jail to face the charges.
This report is based on statements from police and may not contain the full scope of findings. Persons arrested or charged are presumed innocent until found guilty in a court of law or as otherwise decided by a trier-of-fact.
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