Greenwich Officer Honored For Pot Bust That Turned Up Counterfeit Bills

GREENWICH, Conn. -- Police Officer Justin Rivera has been named the May Officer of the Month for his initiative in a case that also turned up counterfeit money, Greenwich police announced.

Greenwich Police Officer Justin Rivera was named May's Officer of the Month.
Photo Credit: *Greenwich Police Department*

Frank MacEachern

06/24/2014 5:00 a.m.

While on a routine patrol, Rivera saw a vehicle he recognized from a previous police incident that had been reported as suspicious. The officers in that case had been unable to establish probable cause, and no arrests were made at that time.

Rivera conducted an impromptu surveillance of the vehicle and its occupants. Upon approaching the vehicle, he detected an odor of what he believed to be marijuana. He also saw the front seat passenger hide an item under the seat.

In addition to marijuana violations, Rivera also discovered 11 counterfeit $100 bills. The U.S. Secret Service was alerted about the counterfeit bills. The Secret Service is investigating the trend of counterfeit $100 bills in the Metro New York area.

Click here to follow Daily Voice Greenwich and receive free news updates.