The man with the penis tattoo ... and a fake $50 bill, cops say

COEUR d’ALENE — A 21-year-old Coeur d’Alene man with a penis tattoo on his left arm, along with a tattoo of the mark of Cain, was arrested Monday for using a counterfeit bill to purchase a knife.

Aaron S. Lewis told police he had planned to trade three knives at the Blades Cutlery store for the one he wanted, but the manager required he pitch in $50.

Lewis, who also has cross tattoos on his knuckles, according to police, carried the counterfeit bill in his pocket from an earlier drug deal. He initially told officers that he unintentionally used the bill to purchase the knife.

Lewis was charged Tuesday with one felony count of forgery. Bail was set at $10,000 despite the urging of prosecutors who wanted a $20,000 bond.

Prosecutors said Lewis had been released on his own recognizance after being charged with a felony in a previous case. In the latest case he admitted to being involved in a drug transaction in January, in addition to passing the fake bill.

Coeur d’Alene police said the counterfeit case is the third in a week in Coeur d’Alene.

“In the last week we have received three separate reports related to counterfeit bills,” Detective Jay Wilhelm said. “The reports do not appear to be related or part of an organized counterfeit production system.”

Investigating and prosecuting counterfeit money cases often involves the use of several agencies, including the U.S. Secret Service, Wilhelm said.

“The use of counterfeit and fraudulent currency affects our local merchants and has a negative impact on the local economy,” he said.

Police didn’t share details of the other cases, but Paul Jacobs at Blades, on the 3600 block of north Government Way, said he used a marking pen to determine that the bill Lewis gave him was fake.

“The marking pen tipped me off,” he said. “It’s the first time it’s happened to me.”

Counterfeit marking pens use an iodine solution that reacts with the starch in wood-based paper to create a black mark. They don’t leave a mark on real bills that are made with fiber-based paper.

Jacobs said Lewis bought a $20 knife and was given $30 in change.

Lewis told police he obtained the bill when he sold methamphetamine in a January drug deal in Coeur d’Alene. He told police he is trying to gain credibility on the street, so he can get “bigger plugs,” or larger quantities of methamphetamine from a dealer.

Magistrate Clark Peterson set Lewis’s preliminary hearing in First District Magistrate Court within 14 days. If a judge finds probable cause, the case will be remanded to district court.