Mister 880

Steve Buchanan and his supervisor revisit their longest-running case, Case 880, focused on counterfeit $1 bills that carry an obvious misspelling: Wahsington. They nickname the forger 'Mister 880.' The case has endured for roughly ten years.

Steve traces spending patterns of 880s and sets up stakeouts in Brooklyn and the Bronx where such notes have appeared. He follows these money trails to narrow down suspects and keep the case active.

William 'Skipper' Miller, Ann's elderly neighbor and junk dealer, slips two counterfeit $1 bills to her in change for a $5 ornament. The bills are part of the 880 operation, and Ann remains unaware at this stage.

Ann unknowingly spends one of the 880s at a business Steve is surveilling, drawing his attention to her possible involvement. Steve records the incident and begins a cautious review of her involvement.

To avoid tipping her off, Steve asks Ann on a dinner date. During the evening, she tests him by dropping hints and using outdated slang from a counterfeiting book she checked out; Steve, amused, tells her he knows about the library book. He resolves to continue seeing her.

After a $20 veterinary bill for his dog, Skipper's finances collapse and he turns to printing $1 bills to survive. He does this as a last resort beyond pawning his junk.

Skipper learns that local businesses have flyers showing how to identify 880 bills; fearing detection, he buries his press and extra bills in the dirt cellar of his apartment building with his dog.

Ann, learning of Skipper's destitution, arranges for him to be employed as a handyman. She hopes to steer him away from crime while supporting him and his dog.

Steve is offered a job in France where forgery is on the rise; he declines, partly due to his connection with Ann and the unresolved Case 880.

Ann, not Steve, figures out that Mister 880 is Skipper. She grapples with loyalty to Steve, adherence to the law, and compassion for an elderly man who used the bills to survive and help his dog.

Skipper's playful dog leads a neighborhood boy to the cellar, where the boy discovers the 880 bills and begins spending them. The spread of the counterfeit notes is set into motion.

Questioning a series of neighborhood boys who received 880s, Steve is led to Skipper and the scope of the operation narrows to his former associate. The path to accountability tightens.

Ann pleads for leniency for Skipper, arguing his lack of greed and his veterans' status. Steve counters, insisting that counterfeiters must be punished to protect currency integrity. The tension between mercy and justice comes to the fore.

Skipper is sentenced to 1 year and a day, with a $1 fine and parole possible in four months. A Navy veteran's commendation is read, and Steve confirms which bill is genuine as part of closing the case.