Palatine currency exchange workers charged with forgery

Two employees of a Palatine currency exchange appeared in bond court Friday to face charges of forgery and perjury.

Maria Munoz-Rojas, 44, of the 400 block of Chatham Circle, Buffalo Grove, and Maria Mercado, 46, of the 0-100 block of Falcon Ridge Court, Algonquin were indicted on 15 counts each, said Cook County Assistant State's Attorney Gbenga Longe.

Cook County Judge Joseph Cataldo ordered each woman held on $20,000 bond, Longe said.

While working at the Palatine North Currency Exchange, in the 1200 block of Dundee Road, between Jan. 17 and Jan. 25, 2013, the women are accused of creating fictitious addresses in order to process vehicle license and title applications for out-of-state residents ineligible to obtain those documents in other states, Longe said.

A representative from the currency exchange would not say whether the women are still employed.

Henry Haupt, deputy press secretary for Secretary of State Jesse White, declined to go into details about the case.

The forgeries were discovered by employees in the department of accounting revenue in the secretary of state's office who noticed irregularities in paper work and contacted secretary of state police to investigate, Haupt said.

"Kudos to (those employees)," said Haupt. "They noticed something that looked like an irregularity and they pursued it."

If convicted of the most serious crime, Munoz-Rojas and Mercado face up to seven years in prison. Probation is also an option.

They next appear in court on Sept. 26.