Casper man allegedly uses movie prop money for Sonic fix

CASPER (WNE) — A Casper man faces a charge of forgery after authorities say he tried to pass off movie prop money as legal tender at an Evansville Sonic.

Antonio William de Jesus, 45, was charged after Sonic staff reported on Oct. 5 that de Jesus had paid for his food with a bill that said “this note is not legal tender” and “for all motion picture use only,” according to an affidavit filed with the charges.

Staff provided Evansville police officers with the suspect’s vehicle’s make, model and license plate number, which authorities traced back to de Jesus.

The Sonic caller then identified de Jesus out of a photo lineup.

On Oct. 8, officers found the vehicle registered to de Jesus at an Evansville shopping center.

After arresting de Jesus at the scene, officers said they found marijuana in the center console of his car. 

De Jesus is the fifth person this year to be charged with forgery or conspiracy to commit forgery in relation to the alleged use of movie prop money as legal tender.

All four others were accused of participating in a Facebook Marketplace scam where they organized buys with online sellers and paid with movie prop cash in person, leaving before the people they scammed were none the wiser.

The affidavit notes no connection between de Jesus and the four others and makes no note of any incidents involving prop money outside of the one at Sonic.

De Jesus faces one count of forgery and one count of misdemeanor possession of a controlled substance. If convicted, he could be sentenced to as many as 11 years in prison.

De Jesus’ preliminary hearing is set for Oct. 14.

This story was published on Oct. 11, 2025.