Counterfeiters plead guilty to Jan. 27 crimes

Two Reno men admitted to using counterfeit currency Tuesday in District Court.

Daniel Winters and Christopher Shoemaker each entered guilty pleas to a series of crimes on Jan. 27.

Winters and Shoemaker acknowledged their role in the counterfeit ring, while Brian Shoemaker will be sentenced May 19. He is the brother of Chris Shoemaker.

Winters pleaded guilty to one count of uttering a forged instrument, while Shoemaker and his attorney worked out a deal with prosecutors.

Shoemaker pleaded to four felony counts including three counts of uttering a forged instrument and one charge of burglary. He was originally charged with 14 counts, 13 of which were felonies.

The deal also agrees to cases being dropped in Lyon and Washoe counties where the two men started their spree.

According to Churchill County Chief Deputy District Attorney Lane Mills, Winters and Shoemaker, along with Brian Shoemaker, began passing fake bills at Walmart.

The plan, Mills said, was to purchase inexpensive items and use fake bills of a large denomination to pay for the merchandise. The change received from a cashier, in real money, was all profit, while the business lost the item and the cash.

After stops in Reno and Fernley, Mills said Winters and Brian Shoemaker entered Walmart. Winters attempted to buy a $1 item, but the clerk was immediately suspicious of the bill and called for a supervisor.

Winters and Shoemaker met Chris Shoemaker, who was driving, in the parking lot, and the trio went to a number of other Fallon businesses.

The official charges detail stops at Pizza Factory, the Daily Grind and Jerry’s Restaurant. They all used the same tactic, but the Fallon police were notified, and two of the three were arrested the same day.

In court, Winters was granted a release on his own recognizance, but must report daily by phone to Court Services. He could serve up to four years in prison and will be sentenced July 14.

Chris Shoemaker, meanwhile, faces up to 22 years in prison and will be sentenced May 19.

Brian Shoemaker pleaded guilty in March to one gross misdemeanor count of uttering a forged instrument. He faces up to a year in the Churchill County Jail.