Alberta counterfeiters nabbed in B.C.

Police in Surrey, B.C., have busted a counterfeiting operation they say was run by an escaped Alberta inmate and seized $75,000 US in fake U.S. bills, fraudulent credit cards and drugs.

Nathan Paolinelli, 28, who escaped from Bowden Institution in Innisfail, Alta., in November 2009, is facing counterfeiting-related charges, RCMP said in a news release Wednesday.

Paolinelli had been serving a sentence for fraud when he escaped last year.

He was arrested on March 4 with his girlfriend, Stacey Scharf, who is also facing charges.

Police displayed phoney U.S. currency, printers, fraudulent credit and gift cards, forged postal keys, debit-card readers and drug paraphernalia during the announcement of the arrests.

A search of the couple's Surrey apartment also turned up specialized paper and tools commonly used for counterfeiting, along with eight computers and more than eight grams of a powder believed to be crystal methamphetamine, the RCMP said.

Police said their investigation into the couple began after fake currency was used in the Okanagan region.

"[In] December of 2009, a counterfeit note that's believed to have been passed by this duo was in Kelowna, British Columbia," said RCMP Const. Peter Neilly. "So, we can assume they've been in [B.C.] for at least a month, by the looks of it."  

Police might recommend additional charges as the investigation continues, Neilly said.