Stolen cell phones delivered to FBI offices in Monroe; Tennessee man arrested

By Johnny Gunter
jgunter@thenewsstar.com

A Tennessee man is being held on two counts of forgery after he had a load of cell phones shipped to the address of the FBI office in Monroe, police reported Friday.

FBI notified Monroe detectives Thursday after they received a call from a Minnesota cell phone distributor that they had shipped some phones to 300 Washington St., Monroe, and had been paid with counterfeit cashier’s checks. They knew they were counterfeit because cashier’s was spelled “cahier’s.”

Clifton C. Wright, 44, of Memphis, is being held in Ouachita Correctional Center on two counts of forgery and as a fugitive from justice on a forgery warrant out of Georgia for the same type scheme, police reported.

Police Detectives Thomas Staten and James Clark said two boxes of phones, a total of 50 refurbished Blackberry and Palm Treo phones, had been delivered Thursday morning and a counterfeit check for $2,359.45 was given in payment. When a second delivery arrived and the suspect seen waving down the driver, the FBI stepped in and stopped the transaction and waited for the detectives to arrive.

Staten said the suspect would apparently follow the delivery trucks into the parking lot and wave down the drivers to get his deliveries before they would go inside.

“He claimed he was picking up the phones for another guy and he was to be paid $1,500,” Clark said. “He was supposed to meet this other guy at Pecanland Mall, but he never showed.”

When he was arrested Thursday, Wright had another counterfeit check made out for $3,000 for the second shipment. The cashier’s checks were suppose to be from Chase. A local Chase branch quickly determined they were counterfeit.

Clark said the Minnesota company reported that similar incidents have been occurring throughout the country.