Lyndsey Rhea Markland, a 41-year-old woman from Panama City, Florida, has received a 12-month federal prison sentence for using fake Federal Reserve notes, commonly known as counterfeit cash.
The court has also mandated that she make restitution to the individuals she deceived. Markland pleaded guilty on June 8, 2023, to four charges of passing counterfeit Federal Reserve notes.
According to official documents and public records, in 2022, Markland visited various businesses in Brevard, Clay, Duval, and Seminole counties, using fake Federal Reserve notes to buy gift cards, merchandise, and food.
Law enforcement later discovered that Markland, along with her co-defendant Neal Evan Pollman (42, from Panama City), were staying at a hotel in Palm Bay.
In November 2022, the Palm Bay Police Department executed a search warrant at their hotel room and found Markland inside.
They also discovered around $30,000 in counterfeit currency, a printer, and other tools used by Pollman to create fake Federal Reserve notes. Shortly after the search warrant was executed, the PBPD located Pollman near the hotel and arrested him.
Upon searching Pollman, officers found various counterfeit Federal Reserve notes on him that were linked to his counterfeiting activities.
A subsequent forensic examination of Pollman’s cellphone revealed images of Federal Reserve notes that he used in the counterfeiting process.
Both Pollman and Markland appeared in federal court on April 27, 2023, having been transported from the Bay County Jail in Jacksonville, where they were serving sentences for violating their state probation related to multiple charges of passing counterfeit Federal Reserve notes.
The court ordered them to remain in detention.
U.S. District Judge Davis sentenced Pollman to 18 months in federal prison for manufacturing counterfeit Federal Reserve notes. Additionally, the court required Pollman to compensate the victims he defrauded.
