Fraudulent checks lead to more than 28 forgery charges in Sycamore

By Sierra Lowe

Two men initially charged with forgery–Jarvis Z. Wright, 31, and Damien L. Little, 27–face an additional 28 counts in relation to a larger fraud operation.

On Monday, National Bank & Trust, 1425 DeKalb Ave. in Sycamore, informed police that a woman, Elissa M. Perry Young, 34, was allegedly attempting to cash a suspicious check for $1,800. Allegedly, the check Perry Young tried to cash was an altered version of one dispensed by the DeKalb Park District.

After apprehending Perry Young, police located Wright and Little, the men who now face additional charges and who allegedly dropped Perry Young off at the bank.

Sycamore Police Sgt. Rod Swartzendruber said police searched the car of Little and Wright and found additional checks. The additional checks are what led to the 28 counts of forgery against Wright and Little, and the bond for those charges was set at $150,000 each.

“As of now, we don’t believe the woman was involved with the other counts of forgery,” Swartzendruber said. “I anticipate other agencies getting involved, possibly with more charges for the individuals.”

DeKalb police Lt. Jason Leverton said DeKalb has recently had similar incidents with the same suspects and has already filed charges.

The allegations are similar, though not necessarily related, to those made against two men and Thomas T. Murray, 39, from a Sept. 19 incident. Allegedly, Murray was picked up by the two men, who then took him to a bank; there, Murray cashed two fraudulent checks that were dispensed by the DeKalb County Circuit Clerk’s Office. Swartzendruber said a warrant has been issued for Murray’s arrest.