Former bartender at Harrison Polish club accused of passing counterfeit $100 bills

A former bartender at a private club in Harrison faces a felony forgery charge after police accused her of passing counterfeit $100 bills she had stashed in her bra.

Amber Snyder, 35, of the 800 block of Short Street in Tarentum, also faces two misdemeanor forgery charges in connection with the thefts reported to police Dec. 15, according to a criminal complaint.

Snyder, who was charged by summons, is scheduled to appear for a preliminary hearing before District Judge Carolyn S. Bengel on April 13, according to court records.

Harrison police were dispatched to the Polish National Alliance, a private social club at 14 Linden St. in Harrison’s Natrona neighborhood, on Dec. 15 for a report about counterfeit bills being passed.

A club manager provided police with video surveillance in which, investigators said, Snyder can be seen on three occasions pulling out a fake $100 bill she had in her bra and handing it over to a bartender, who exchanges the counterfeit for five $20 bills, the complaint said.

A manager at the bar told the Tribune-Review that Snyder had been fired from her position several months before but was at the bar on the night the alleged incident took place.

Police said the fake bills are slightly larger and feel different than real currency.

They also had the words “copy money” stamped on both sides of the bill, the complaint said.

When police questioned Snyder about the incident in January, she told them the other bartender was to blame for the thefts, the complaint said.

Investigators told Snyder she was being charged because she had the fake bills in her possession and was the person who exchanged them for cash, according to the complaint.