BEDFORD – A Bedford man was arrested on a charge of counterfeiting.
Police arrested 38-year-old Edward Parker Jr. after he allegedly attempted to purchase a Samsung Galaxy A11 cell phone from a man on Facebook Marketplace for $120 with counterfeit money.
On January 10, 2021, a man contacted Bedford police stating that Parker contacted him about purchasing the phone. The two agreed to meet at Jay C Fuel Center at 3 p.m. Parker counted out the $120 but appeared nervous. Parker then left in a gray SUV.
After the transaction, the man noticed the money was counterfeit.
The complainant attempted to message Parker regarding the counterfeit bills but Parker blocked his messages.
The man provided police with the six counterfeit $20 bills.
A few days later into the investigation, officers approached Parker at McDonalds, his place of employment. Parker denied having knowledge of the money being counterfeit. Parker stated he received the money from a friend that owed him money and stated he also had an additional $40 of the counterfeit money.
Police say Parker remained adamant that he didn’t know the bills were counterfeit, but then changed his story saying he was “suspicious” about the bills and “yeah for the most part” knew they were fake.
Later Parker returned the phone he had purchased to the Police Department.
The information was forwarded to the Lawrence County Prosecutor’s Office and a warrant was issued for Parker’s arrest.
