Man Pleads Guilty to Possession of Counterfeit Securities

The U.S Attorney’s Office in Muskogee announced Friday that a Georgia man, arrested by an Oklahoma Highway Patrol trooper on Interstate 40 in Sequoyah County in October, has plead guilty to possession of counterfeit securities, a crime punishable by not more than 10 years in prison, a fine up to $250,000 or both. The charges against Tory Derrel Larkins, 30, of Lithia, Ga., resulted from an investigation by the OHP and the U.S Secret Service.

The Indictment alleges that on Oct. 9, Larkins possessed counterfeit securities - counterfeit checks purported to be genuine checks of MTW Creations LLC, drawn on an account at Bank of America. According to the OHP report, Larkins was driving east on I-40, and was clocked at 78 miles per hour in a 70 miles per hour speed zone. He was stopped by the OHP trooper at the 299 eastbound marker. The trooper noticed Larkins was nervous, his hands were shaking uncontrollably and his stomach was quivering. Larkins gave the trooper several stories about his travels while seated in the OHP car, then reached into a pocket and pulled out some gift cards and told the trooper they were gift cards. When the trooper asked to see the cards, Larkins stuck them back into his pocket and refused to hand them over, even after several requests to do so. He also would not remove his hand from his pocket, suggesting to the trooper that he may have been searching for a weapon. When the trooper demanded Larkins remove his hand from his pocket, Larkins refused, according to the report. The trooper physically removed Larkins from the patrol car and told him he was under arrest. According to the report, Larkins refused to comply and continued to struggle with the trooper on the ground. Larkins made several attempts to pull away, and would not comply with the trooper’s commands. At about that time a second trooper arrived to assist, and Larkins was taken into custody. The investigation revealed Larkins was allegedly driving without a valid license, was driving a third-party expired rental vehicle, had several computers and printers, along with over 60 alleged counterfeit checks, some of which had been denied and some of which were used to purchase the gift cards.

U.S. Judge Kimberly E. West accepted Larkins’ guilty plea and ordered the completion of a presentence report.  Sentencing will be scheduled following its completion.  The defendant will remain in the custody of the U.S. Marshal Service pending sentencing. Assistant U.S. Attorney Chris Wilson represented the United States in the case.

Sally Maxwell, Senior News Director

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