Sheriff: Two women caught passing fake $100 bills

Two Morgan City women were jailed Thursday when they were caught with counterfeit $100 bills after authorities received a call from an Amelia business about two people attempting to purchase items with counterfeit money, St. Mary Parish Sheriff Mark Hebert said in a news release.
—Tracy Lynn Silva, 51, of Park Street in Morgan City, was arrested at 9:50 a.m. Thursday on the charges of no driver’s license, no vehicle insurance and monetary instrument abuse.
—Areana Candanedo, 25, of Park Street in Morgan City, was arrested at 9:50 a.m. Thursday on the charge of monetary instrument abuse.
A deputy assigned to patrol the Amelia area responded to a call at a business in regard to two individuals attempting to purchase items with counterfeit bills. The deputy later located those individuals during a traffic stop.
The deputy made contact with the driver, Silva, and learned that she did not have a driver’s license or vehicle insurance. Two counterfeit $100 bills were located in an ensuing search, Hebert said.
The deputy made contact with the passenger, Candanedo, and discovered that she was in possession of two counterfeit $100 bills. Silva and Candanedo were jailed with no bail set.
Hebert reported responding to 38 complaints in the parish and reported the following arrests in east St. Mary Parish:
—Sean Patrick Stewart, 40, of Grandwood Apartments in Patterson, was arrested at 11:26 a.m. Thursday on a warrant for failing to appear to court on charges of theft over $500 and for a warrant for failing to appear to court on charges of driving under suspension and failure to use a seat belt.
Deputies assigned to patrol the Patterson area located Stewart at a local business and learned of his active warrants. Stewart was jailed with no bail set.
—Skilan Gros, 22, of Southwest Road in Bayou Vista, was arrested at 10:55 a.m. Thursday on the charges of possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia.
—Heather Dupre, 28, of Southwest Road in Bayou Vista, was arrested at 10:55 a.m. Thursday on the charges of possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Detectives with the narcotics division patrolling the Berwick area observed a cigarette being thrown out of a vehicle’s window. The vehicle also crossed the center line on several occasions. Detectives initiated a traffic stop and made contact with the driver, Gros, and passenger, Dupre.
Dupre was attempting to conceal marijuana. She was detained for further investigation. Detectives conducted an ensuing search of the vehicle and located cigar wraps. Gros admitted that she purchased the marijuana and Dupre grabbed it to hide it, Hebert said. Gros and Dupre were both released on a summons to appear in court Oct. 17.
—Joshua Roshell, 22, of Lenny’s Lane in Amelia, was arrested at 9:58 p.m. Wednesday on the charges of possession of marijuana, possession of a schedule II narcotic and obstruction of justice.
Narcotics division detectives were patrolling the Morgan City area when they saw a vehicle fail to utilize a turn signal while on Martin Luther King Boulevard. Detectives stopped the vehicle and made contact with the passenger of the vehicle, Roshell. During the stop, detectives found marijuana and crack cocaine on Roshell, the sheriff said. Roshell was jailed with no bail set.
Morgan City Police Chief James Blair reported the following arrests:
—Jonah A. Steele, 40, of Gina Street in Patterson, was arrested at 11:15 a.m. Thursday on warrants for failure to appear on the charge of improper lane usage and failure to appear on the charge of open container in a vehicle.
Steele was transported from the Patterson Police Department to the Morgan City Police Department on warrants. Steele was booked into the Morgan City jail.
—Priscilla Lovell, 39, of Wedell Street in Patterson, was arrested at 12:50 p.m. Thursday on warrants charging her with criminal damage to property and domestic abuse battery.
Lovell was transported from the Patterson Police Department to the Morgan City Police Department on warrants, which stem from an incident reported June 10 at a hotel on La. 182. Lovell was booked into the Morgan City jail.
—Desmond J. Richard, 34, of Mike Drive in Patterson, was arrested at 2:10 p.m. Thursday on warrants for failure to appear on the charge of violation of a protective order, failure to appear on the charge of resisting an officer, failure to appear on the charge of no driver’s license and failure to appear on the charge of speeding.
Richard was transported from the St. Mary Parish Sheriff’s Office jail to the Morgan City Police Department on several warrants. Richard was booked into the Morgan City Jail and incarcerated.
Berwick Police Chief James Richard reported the following arrests:
—Dustin Guilbeau, 31, of Sixth Street in Berwick, was arrested at 7:09 p.m. Thursday on the charge of violation of a protective order and on a warrant for failure to appear for speeding. No bail is set.
—George Griffin Jr., 63, of Rose Street in Berwick, was arrested at 8:54 p.m. Thursday on the charges of possession of drug paraphernalia and on a St. Mary Parish warrant for failure to appear. No bail is set.
Patterson Police Chief Patrick LaSalle reported no arrests.