Legendary FBI Detective-Chapter 843 - 845: The Story Behind the Case (Part 2)

The most important aspect of counterfeiting money is quality control.

Whether it's the printing plates, paper, ink, or watermarks, nothing can be sloppy; everything must be the best.

These are technical aspects of counterfeiting money. Additionally, the factory's location, the personnel making the counterfeit money, the selling plan, the buyers' identities…

All these need careful consideration and investigation; every step requires meticulous attention, as caution is needed to reach the end. These also fall under quality control.

Considering that only one counterfeit note was lost, and Susan and the others opposed relocating the factory, Herman thought for a long time and finally chose to compromise.

As expected, lax quality control can indeed cause big problems.

Initially, Benson didn't recognize that the twenty US Dollar note was a super counterfeit and went shopping with it.

Eventually, the mall's money checker found a problem with the twenty US Dollar note, and only then did Benson realize.

Additionally, Susan and the others would shop from time to time and remained mysteriously indoors otherwise, keeping a very regular schedule. Benson instantly realized something was wrong with that warehouse.

Based on the food Susan purchased, Benson estimated there were about 10 people in the warehouse.

He planned to find time to investigate, but Leon said it was time to go treasure hunting, so Benson had to put it aside and go to sea with the fleet.

The treasure hunting process for Benson and the others went very smoothly. Before long, they found the sunken SS Central America, and even managed to retrieve some gold coins and gold bars.

Because the ship wasn't large enough and the equipment wasn't complete, unable to keep diving, Benson, Leon, and the others decided to temporarily return to shore and find a bigger ship to go back and collect more gold.

Upon reaching the shore, Benson, Leon, and others' secretive behavior with a box aroused some people's attention.

A technical worker seized the moment of haste and extracted some information from one of the crew members.

Three and a half minutes later, more than half of Atlanta's underworld knew about this.

Crew member: "…"

The Vasel Wen team, who had robbed a bank some time ago and had been idle recently, also got wind of this and after a brief discussion decided to make some extra money, launching a cannibalistic action that very night.

The treasure hunting team couldn't evade, losing a large part of its members, leaving only Benson, Leon, and the mentally unstable Anatoli to survive.

The three of them fled in all directions. Seeing that they couldn't shake off their pursuers, Benson decided to involve others, persuading Leon to drive towards the direction of a suburban warehouse.

Benson remembered there were about ten people there, enough to buy them some time.

"Those bastards, Benson and Leon."

Speaking of which, Herman's face was full of anger, he slammed the interrogation table hard and said angrily:

"We were working overtime printing counterfeit notes. Before we realized it, they barged into the factory with a group of people.

We fought back fiercely, and in the intense battle, Susan and the others died, and Vasel Wen suffered heavy losses too…"

To prevent the counterfeit note information from leaking, Herman had no choice but to start a fire, preparing to burn everything to ashes.

The fire consumed the counterfeit notes, turning into a raging inferno, quickly burning ninety percent of the warehouse's items, destroying months of Herman and others' hard work in an instant.

"I thought at that time, this was the worst thing in the world."

Herman sighed long and low, saying:

"I never expected that Vasel Wen and Gold Teeth Vernon survived and even took us hostage."

Only five people survived the fire:

Vasel Wen, Gold Teeth Vernon, Benson, Herman, and another helper from Herman's counterfeit team.

Benson was severely burned, and Vasel Wen, in kindness, put him out of his misery with a bullet after asking for Anatoli's information.

As for the helper in the counterfeit team, who was badly wounded in the prior gunfight, Anatoli, filled with compassion, couldn't bear to see the sufferings, and sent him into a deep sleep with another shot.

Thus, the three-party melee ended, leaving only Herman, Vasel Wen, Gold Teeth Vernon, and the mentally unstable Anatoli alive.

Among them, Anatoli carried a package of counterfeit notes and gold coins, heading to New York as Benson advised before his death.

Vasel Wen and Gold Teeth Vernon had to guard Herman and couldn't personally go after others, so they used some means to find Klaus, sending him to lead a team to catch Anatoli.

Upon arriving in New York, Anatoli showed counterfeit money and gold coins to Campbell Hank, Benson's half-brother.

The junkie Campbell Hank hid the gold coins but used counterfeit notes to deceitfully buy much flour and sold the remaining counterfeit notes to the mafia.

Luo An and others destroyed the mafia and unexpectedly found counterfeit notes, starting an in-depth investigation…

Chenier, who was recording the interrogation, nodded slightly. At this point, the case's context had become clear, and its development was vivid.

"There's one more thing."

Luo An shook his head slightly, clapping to catch Chenier's and the silent Herman's attention, and asked:

"You just said Campbell Hank and Gold Teeth Vernon did not kill you after capturing you.

Even when provoked by you, Campbell Hank suppressed his anger. What's the story here?"

If Campbell Hank was only interested in salvaging gold, there would be no need for him to be so patient with Herman. The mentally unstable Anatoli was the best person to recruit.

"Campbell Hank wants me to make counterfeit notes for him."

Herman sneered, not hiding this part, and answered:

"I don't know his purpose for making counterfeit notes.

However, he repeatedly asked how different my counterfeit notes are from real ones, whether they can pass for the real thing, and even inquired if banks could detect them…"

Hearing Herman's description, Chenier frowned deeply. Her expression changed as she thought of a specific term: bait and switch!

Reflecting on that wealthy man, Harrison Hamid… Chenier swallowed her words and leaned in to whisper to Luo An:

"Luo An, is Herman planning to swap counterfeit notes for real ones?"

"It's possible."

Luo An chuckled. Creating a bait-and-switch plan to rob a bank with counterfeit notes sounds imaginative, but with an insider's help, the success rate isn't low.

Not lingering on the topic, Luo An briefly asked for some more case details before leading Chenier out of the interrogation room.

"How was it? Did Herman talk?"

As soon as the two walked out of the interrogation room, Reesi sped up to them. Luo An handed the interrogation record to her, then walked over to Mona and asked:

"How's it going with the IRS? Any calls?"

"Supervisor Elmer called you earlier."

Mona handed the phone to Luo An, saying:

"But he didn't state any specifics, just asked you to call him back when you have time."

"OK."

Luo An took the phone and walked aside. Meanwhile, Winslow approached Reesi, smiling as he asked:

"How does the interrogation record look?"

"Luo An did great, Herman spilled everything he needed to."

Reesi casually replied, swiftly skimming through it before asking:

"Chenier, where's the gold?"

Chenier shrugged:

"The ones underwater are still there, and as for the ones retrieved, only Campbell Hank knows where they are."