>> it's midnight on the bustling las vegas strip, and the high life is in full swing. in a dark corner of town, something else is going down. this man is stealing a car. what he doesn't know is that the police are watching. >> right there. >> and so are we. >> on the other side of las vegas, these people are talking business. they're selling stolen

merchandise. this woman has cared. so does he. this guy has guns. this man is selling counterfeit money. he's even holding a class on how to make the fake bills. they all think they're dealing with other crooks. but they're really selling to cops. >> how about 500 bucks for everything? >> back on the strip, this man and woman are talking about sex. >> get as much money as you're looking for. >> he thinks she's a prostitute. seems to be offering his services as a pimp. >> you would give me guidance? >> he doesn't know that she's really a detective and that we're watching from only a few feet away.

>> he is very confident. he's not even looking around. >> tonight we'll go behind the scenes like never before with the las vegas metropolitan police department. >> apparently he thinks he makes a lot of money doing this. >> undercover as it happens to solve crime, and you'll hear what suspected criminals have to say for themselves. >> chris hanson with ""dateline" nbc." how you doing? >> what about the restaurant that time when she says -- >> was y'all following us around at the restaurant? >> i'll get to that in a little bit. i have a video i think you might want to see. can i play it for you? >> more than 30 million tourists will visit las vegas this year. and while they eat, drink, and play, another side of vegas is hard at work. criminals scamming, stealing cars, and selling sex. that's where the cops come in. over the past year, we've been watching undercover on riefgs the las vegas police department,

one of the most proact initiative the country. >> you have to be creative in your approach to law enforcement. the criminal element is so you have to be as well. >> sheriff doug giless pea is the man in charge. >> if you continue to go after them the same way you always have, you'll get the same results. >> one of the biggest problems, car theft. >> auto theft is a prime example. we were going after auto theft in traditional ways, and then we brought in some nontraditional ways. >> enter members of a special auto theft unit called the viper squad. lieutenant bobby duval who runs the unit has a warning for car thieves. >> las vegas is not a place to come and steal cars. it really isn't. >> his detectives use bait cars that are strategically placed to present an opportunity for potential thieves, all rigged with hidden cameras. >> i mean, we've got state of the art bait car program. we have one of the largest fleets in the united states. and we have guys that know how

to work them. >> tonight, the bait car is a 2006 escalade. >> why are you following me? >> the cops s s fake a fight ben a man and a woman. where did they get the idea? >> this is an actual case where people have had their cars stolen. >> this man spots the kark gets in and looks around. he doesn't take the bait and leaves. moments later, this suv pulls up across the street. this man gets in and begins to drive away. and within minutes, he pulls over. that's when police move in. >> hands up! hands hold up! >> they arrest two men, the driver and his accomplice, a man named frankie, who i got a chance to talk to. chris hanson with "dateline" nbc.

>> i remember you guys to catch a predator. >> you watch "to catch a predator"? you like it? >> i like that you guys catch them. crazy people out here nowadays. >> well, guess what, we're catching now. auto thieves. tell me what happened? >> there was a white guy and a white lady fighting. the white lady got out of the car and took out with a white guy in another truck. me and my friend went down there to see what was going on. and he took the truck. >> so was it just an impulse there? >> pretty much. >> spur of moment? >> yeah. >> you're in a bit of a jam right now. >> oh yeah. >> how old are you? >> 19. >> have you ever been busted before? >> i've never done nothing wrong. >> never taken any cars? >> nope. >> gone to jail? >> nope. clean record. been to court once. >> for what? >> for driving without a permit. that's about it. >> what's your biggest regret tonight? >> getting in the truck and going over there.

that's the biggest regret i have right now. >> so you're facing serious charges here tonight. >> yeah. at 19 years old. >> uh-huh. it was one bad judgment call. >> frankie has pleaded guilty for attempting to possess a stolen vehicle. detective duval hopes his arrest serves as a warning to others. >> first of all, hopefully people will get the message that you don't steal cars in las vegas. the second message is that if you do, there's a good chance you're going to run into one of ours. >> unfortunately, that doesn't always happen. most of the time, there are real victims. this woman had her car stolen at gunpoint. >> did he point the gun at you? >> yes. the whole time it was pointed at me. >> would the thief who did it ever be found? >> dude! >> that leads us to another undercover operation going on in vegas. we're watching that one, too, and once again, the bad guys don't know it. >> nice to meet you. >> that's next. and coming up later --

>> i mean, i can't do things for free. >> we're just a few feet away from a bold crackdown right on the strip. and someone is surprised to see us. what would have happened -- >> i would have walked to 7-eleven, went home and watched some "dateline" nbc tomorrow. with somebody else on the news. still ahead on vegas undercover. o see? and does it leave your bedmate be? don't you wish there was a light that wouldn't keep them up all night? if so, you'll be happy to know, our newest nook now comes with glow. introducing nook simple touch with glowlight, the only e-reader made for bedtime reading. find your nook at your neighborhood barnes & noble. today training depends on technology. and when it takes a battery, there are athletes everywhere who trust duracell. they rely on copper to go for the gold. duracell. trusted everywhere.

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behind every car that's stolen, there's an all too real victim. >> somebody just stole my car. >> i was actually at work. i was working late. and i was in the office by myself. >> 23-year-old monique was about to leave her office when a man approached her and asked to use the phone. >> i was in the middle of asking him, oh, you need to use the phone, whenever i looked up and saw the gun.

>> he took my keys. >> are you okay? >> yeah. >> the man wanted her cadillac parked outside. >> it was just unreal. you see this on tv and you never think it's going to happen. >> it's scary, i know. >> but the las vegas police know it happens all too often. and they know when thieves steal cars or other items, it's more than likely they'll be looking for a place to sell the goods. >> our shop is coming up on the right-hand side. >> so the las vegas intelligence unit run by lieutenant dave lougue has rented this shop. >> you bring stolen, high end electronics, guns, vehicles, no questions asked and you'll get paid cash for it under the table. >> undercover detectives will pose as crooks who buy hot items. the shop is tucked away in an industrial area off the vegas strip and masquerades as a place that installs car audio systems. everything in the store front is a prop with a purpose.

>> even things like this, the eight ball. the rubik's cube. why do you have these out here on the countertop? >> everything in this office is pretty much wiped down after every deal in order to gather information from fingerprints if need be. >> police have rigged the shop with hidden cameras and we've been allowed to install some of our own. >> there's a sccamera hidden rit here. another hidden right here. h how dangerous is it for you to do an undercover operation? >> for the undercover detectives, it's very dangerous. you don't know who's going to pull out a gun. >> while the undercover officers are out front, they are under constant surveillance from this back room. >> so one of the deals is going down there are undercover officers right here, hands on their guns ready to pop out here in case something goes bad. >> the word is out on the street that the owners of the so called audio shop actually buy stolen

goods. now it's time for the customers. >> come on in. >> meet cheryl miller, also known as chevy, a 40-year-old mother of three. today she's selling a 2002 ford mustang. >> is it in good shape? >> oh yeah, it's awesome. >> she says a friend of hearse reported the car stolen in order to collect the insurance. another day, chevy is back and says she and some of her friends have guns. >> a two-gauge. and a three. >> they're all rifles. >> but she says her forte is forgery, making fake checks. >> i make big checks. >> chevy is now a regular, and begins to bring her friends to the shop. the undercover cops are doing a bang-up business. characters of all kinds come by.

this man has some large guns. >> here comes britney, an unlikely looking suspect. >> where are you from? >> today, she's come with a 2006 dodge pickup truck. she says it was taken from a man she knows. she also says she's got guns, lots of them. the cops working this operation are a tight-knit group of specially trained undercover detectives. >> when you do one of these deals, it is not just another day at the office, is it? >> it's never just another day at the office. >> we've hidden their faces to protect their identities. >> what do you want folks to know most about this case? >> there's lots of

unconventional ways that we'll go after these people and we're doing everything we can to get them and be creative and put them in prison. >> one thing these detectives were surprised about was how many women showed up. like allison, a 43-year-old single mother, she's here to sell this stolen ford thunder bird. >> she says she's selling the car for a friend and doesn't know if it's been recorded stolen yet. >> i've been driving it up and down boulder highway. >> allison also tells the undercover detectives she knows someone who can come up with a fake title for the car. >> i have a girlfriend that works down at one of the teller places and she does the titles. >> they settle on a price. $200. >> you know what, if you handed

me a dollar right now, i would have taken it. >> nice to meet you. >> this is kyle kennedy, he and a friend have come in to sell a stolen suv. the cops make him feel right at home. soon, he reveals he's just become a father. >> you got a baby. >> yeah. >> not your average family man. >> soon they get down to business and settle on a price. $550 for a car worth $25,000. kyle and his friend leave with the cash. like most of the suspects who will visit the store, police let kyle walk so they don't blow their cover. the plan is to arrest all the suspects once the operation has ended. two weeks later, kyle is back with a cadillac, and now he's bragging to the cops about how he stole it using a weapon.

>> and whose car is it? >> he said i'm going to need your keys. >> it's monique's. remember, she was the one robbed at gunpoint. now that police know kyle is violent, they can't let him walk. >> this person has to be removed from the street as quickly as possible. >> but the trick is to not tip him off that the store front is really a police operation. lieutenant bobby duval handles the arrest. >> the operation tonight is to safely take him into custody and then get him in jail. >> they're not going to tell kyle he was caught in a sting. they come up with another excuse. they pull him over and tell him his victim picked him out of a photo lineup. so he still has no idea how he was really caught. >> can i ask what's going on? >> kyle, who is serving a prison term on other charges, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to one to four years in prison for his store front crimes. >> police ultimately caught this guy. >> yes. >> how did that feel?

>> it was incredible. before this, i thought that cops don't really do anything, they just drive around. >> turns out, in vegas, police do a lot. undercover detectives are everywhere, and it isn't only car thieves they're after. >> her target audience is going to be a pimp. >> a pump? >> hi, honey. it's just too hard." then there was a moment. when i decided to find a way to keep going. go for olympic gold and go to college too. [ male announcer ] every day we help students earn their bachelor's or master's degree for tomorrow's careers. this is your moment. let nothing stand in your way. devry university, proud to support the education of our u.s. olympic team.

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this woman looks like a prostitute and is acting like one. >> hi, honey. >> but she's really an undercover detective with a specialized squad called the pimp investigative team, p.i.t. for short. >> how do you prepare mentally for your role? >> i have a story that i usually stick to. i usually stick to that same story all night long. i go over that in my mind multiple times. >> her story, she's a new arrival in las vegas that's trying prostitution for the first time. her supervisor, lieutenant karen hughes, runs the vice unit.

>> her target audience, so to speak, is going to be a pimp. >> a pimp? >> a man that's going to be out there recruiting for new girls into his stable. >> i would do anything for the right money. >> tonight, we watch as the operation begins off the strip at a known hooker hangout. and within minutes, she's propositioned by customers again and again. more than a dozen times within 30 minutes. but the real target, the pimps, are nowhere to be seen. >> she seems to know pretty quickly whether or not she's dealing with a pimp or a john. >> so just after midnight, they move to a different location right on the vegas strip. almost immediately, she's approached by this man while we watch from just a few feet away. >> i know someone i can introduce you to. >> the undercover police officer was literally on the streets in less than four minutes. as you can see, the conversation

is continuing. she didn't think he was a pimp, she would have walked away by now. the suspected pimp suggests one of his favorite ways to advertise her services. >> i don't know if you ever worked on craigslist. it's pretty open. you can do pretty much anything on craigslist. >> he never openly admits he's a pimp. but listen to what he does say. >> you need somebody you can rely on, somebody you can call when the chips are down, somebody when the chips are up, somebody that's going to be there for you, keep you focused. because it's not easy out there for anybody. >> somebody to give me guidance. >> give you guidance. >> in las vegas, encouraging or promoting prostitution is a felony called pandering, and the cops believe there's no mistaking what he has in mind. >> you got to make your next

move as your best move. you have to invest in me. >> the undercover police officer pretend she's interested and tells the suspect that she's got an appointment to turn a trick and will call him when she's done. >> can i get your number? >> you're going to have to pay me for it. >> can i pay you after i see this guy? you can call me any time. >> an hour later, the suspected pimp is back to collect his money. >> a lot of guys would try to take you. >> they walk into a casino. that's when the undercover cop hands him the cash she says is from the trick she just turned. and police move in. he agrees to talk to me before he heads off to jail. >> hey, christopher. chris hanson with "dateline" nbc. can you tell me what happened tonight? >> we're just all hang out, man. >> the suspect insists he never

approached her. it was the other way around. >> who made the first contact? >> she made eye contact with me. >> she made eye contact? >> i said hey, she said hey. she's a good looking woman. i'm a good looking dude. that's what i felt like attracted her to me. >> the real question, was it all about prostitution? >> did you tell her that you could be her pimp? >> i've never been a pimp in my life. >> you've never been a pimp in your life? >> i'm not a pimp. >> but you see how this looks. >> i see how it looks. what it looks is not what it really is. i understand that this is a sting operation. i understand that i feel like i've been victimized. i understand that i'm going to jail right now. >> but you didn't have to take her money. you didn't have to promise her certain things that a pimp would promise. >> the economy's dead. i can't find a job nowhere. my intentions were to come out, get a couple drinks and go back home. >> what would have happened had she not been there? >> i would have walked to

7-eleven, went home. and been watching "dateline" nbc tomorrow with somebody else on the news. >> christopher pleaded guilty to pandering and was sentenced to three years probation. as you can see, the idea that prostitution is tolerated in vegas is a myth. there's this image that some people have of prostitution in las vegas being this glamorous high class world of call girls. >> that's a fallacy. it is violent, vile, degrading therefrom woman says she was caught up in that world, a victim of a pimp who lured her to las vegas for prostitution. >> there are other girls out there just like me. >> take a deep breath. >> now the police will be coming to her rescue. that's next. coming up later, money for nothing? we'll take you to a secret garage where somebody's cooking up counterfeits. >> showing how to clean the bills. >> but the guy who thinks he's

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a candle light vigil is scheduled at boston university after three students died in a tragic zentd in new zealand. a fourth student is in critical condition. california governor jerry brown says the state's deficit has grown to $16 billion. on monday, he'll lay out a revised spending plan for coming fiscal year, including necessary tax increases. more news later. now back to "vegas undercover." donna miranda is in trouble, and she's called the police for help. her story, she came to vegas to meet a man named steven harris,

and she claims he tried to intimidate her into working for him as a prostitute. >> how did it start? >> girls are young and naive and they'll pretty much believe anything that a sweet guy has to say to him. and that's what i did. and there's plenty of other girls out there like me. >> it started as an online relationship. >> everything seemed to be great. he promised me the world he was going to take care of me and my kids. >> he says that all changed and that's why the pimp investigative team is gathered here in this parking lot. she told police what happened while she and her new boyfriend were at dinner one night. >> there were a couple gentlemen. he said why don't you go over there and talk to him and see what he can do for us. >> she thought harris was suggesting she offer herself for sex. >> i thought he was kidding. >> but when they got back to his house, donna says harris let her know he wasn't joking at all. >> he said why didn't you do what i told you to do? i make the decisions now. you don't make your own

decisions. you were supposed to talk to those gentlemen like i told you and make us some money. >> she said she needed to get out and fast. >> i was packing my stuff. he put his right arm around my stomach, i tried to pull away and he threw me across the room. >> terrified, she says she fled the house barefoot. >> i didn't have any shoes on. >> you just bolted. >> i just ran out the front door. >> that's when she called 911. >> he slapped me and threw me up and stuff like that. >> turns out after donna called 911, harris called police as well, claiming he was the victim, that she hit him. >> well,

>> hey, steven, how you doing, man? >> detectives come in with another plan. they tell harris to meet them at a starbucks. they tell him they're investigating whether donna really did start the fight. >> i just want to talk to you a little bit about what happened the other night. she gave mer her side of the story. >> and harris takes the bait. >> it's about five minutes after 2:00. harris said he'd be here at the

starbucks at 2:00 to meet with the detective. >> when harris shows up, the cops move in and arrest him. he agrees to talk to me. >> i'm chris hanson of "dateline." i'd shake your hand except -- we're doing a story on pimps in las vegas. >> lucky for me, huh? >> lucky for you. did you ever see our show "to catch a predator"? >> yeah, that's what i'm saying. was she 17 or something? >> no, no, no. >> harris says he did nothing wrong, that donna found him online, her photos may be what attracted him. >> what was your plan for donna? >> i was going to make her my lady. >> your lady? >> yeah, my woman. >> he says he's not a pimp and never asked donna to approach a group of men when they were out to dinner. >> what about at the restaurant that time when she says -- >> was y'all following us around at the restaurant that time? >> i'll get to that in a little bit. >> i'll ask you like.

this if i was a so called pimp, i would never let one of my girls so solicit somebody while they were with me. why would i do that? that's just dumb. if i was a pimp, i wouldn't do that. >> remember, he called police to say donna hit him, not the other way around. >> so you're the victim here? >> honestly, i am the victim. first she beats me up. now i'm going to jail for pimping. honestly, i am the victim here. >> before he goes off to jail, harris offers a word of advice. >> that's what i want folks to know. men out there, if you think you want to call the cops because your spouse beat you up, you might want to think about that again. >> all right. i appreciate you talking to me. >> no problem. appreciate you guys talking to me. keep up the good work. i like that show. >> take care. harris pleaded guilty to pandering. while the pimp squad takes harris away, the undercover store front is still attracting suspects who seemed to think they have a license to steal, but one in particular thinks he has a license to print money.

>> i made so much money off this [ bleep ]. >> that's next. and coming up later -- >> is that you right there? >> they're back, it's a round-up of suspects and they're caught by surprise when they learn they're caught on tape. >> did you try to sell some counterfeit money? i have a videotape that i think you may want to see. >> still ahead on "vegas undercover." hey. am i the only one here without a sippy cup? not in my house. with maxwell house, we are perfectly capable of brewing our own coffee.

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they never imagined. it's certainly something we've never seen. meet 39-year-old brian rusty king. his merchandise, counterfeit hundred dollar bills. fake money he says is a profitable business. >> i made so much money off this [ bleep ], it's unbelievable. >> in his pocket, $2,000 worth of the fakes. >> what do you have on you right now? >> a couple grand. i got 2,000 on me. >> he hands the bogus bills to the undercover cops. where does he get the counterfeits? he says from some really scary guys. >> they're real serious people. there's no [ bleep ] joking around. they're real quiet. >> the undercover cops carefully examine the counterfeit bills and offer to pay rusty 25 cents on the dollar. he takes the $500 in real currency for the $2,000 in counterfeits. how does he keep his bills straight?

rusty says passing counterfeit money has not been difficult. he says he simply spends real money in a store, gets change from the clerk, then quickly finds an excuse to introduce a fake bill. >> i'll walk away and i'm gone that -- can you give me a pack of cigarettes or something? they just give them to you. >> he claims it's passed into circulation by an insider at a casino he says takes his fake bills and gives him real currency. >> we got like six different people who walk in and they'll take like $500 apiece and they give him the money and he takes it. but the way he inserts it and turns it in, i guess somehow he's mixing it up. >> rusty says the koucounterfeis

have been trying to refine the process in an effort to improve the product. he says they're holding back some recently printed bills to make sure they're just perfect. >> hold the bill a couple days and see if anything funny happens, like changes colors or anything weird. >> the cops want to know more about how these bills are made. a lot more. so a few weeks later, rusty is back. now rusty tells them he's on his own. there aren't any partners. and this time, in a garage behind the store front, for $1,500, he will give them a demonstration in the fine art of counterfeiting. we're watching from the back room. >> rusty has no idea that he's talking to undercover police officers. >> first, he takes real five dollar bills and sets out to remove all of their ink. apparently making counterfeit money isn't as high-tech as one would imagine. he soaks them in a degreaser bought at an automotive store and heats them up for a minute

or so in a microwave oven. >> no longer than ten minutes in there at all. >> he teaches them how to brush the bills clean. >> rusty is showing the undercover officers how to clean the bills, actually taking the ink right all. >> he finishes washing the bill in a bowl of water and sprays with it a household cleaner. >> just cleaning that stuff off of it. >> this is giving new meaning to the phrase laundering money. then he uses a hair drier to finish the drying process. when he's done what used to be a five dollar bill is virtually blank. except for the water mark of abraham lincoln. to make the fake hundred, he'll use an ink jet printer. >> so an ink jet printer.

>> he scans the photo of a real $100 bill. >> the machine scans it every time and that's what it's putting on top of here. >> and prints it on top of the blank paper he just created from that five dollar bill. the job is finished. the result, a counterfeit hundred dollar bill. what's the quality? the police say as counterfeits go, it's fairly good. >> so if somebody were to take the time to actually hold this up to a light, you could actually see abraham lincoln and the five dollar strip here. >> correct. but most people don't do that. >> correct. most people look to see some sort of portrait, a reflection, and some sort of strip here. >> but for his part, rusty is proud of his work. in case you're thinking of trying this at home, you should know we've left out a number of key steps. and one more thing. counterfeiting is a felony,

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we've been watching as undercover las vegas detectives catch suspected car thieves and pimps. >> safety is the utmost importance to us. we want everybody to come back safe. >> now, after a ten-month investigation, the undercover operation has ended. it's time to round up the suspects. lieutenant dave lougue informs

his officers. >> don't let your guard down. >> teams of police will be fanning out in las vegas in search of 38 suspects who are accused of selling stolen goods to police. some have left town, but they find many others. there was christopher woods, who sold guns to undercover officers. he's brought to police headquarters. >> hey, chris. chris hanson with "dateline" nbc. we're doing a story on a metro investigation. >> i don't want to talk to you, sir. >> all right. well, thanks for your time. >> christopher pleaded guilty and was sentenced to six to 20 years in prison. here comes allison hunt. she's the single mom who sold a stolen car. >> hey, allison. chris hanson with "dateline" nbc. how you doing? >> well, not good, obviously. can you tell me what happened here? >> i don't know what they're talking about. i have no idea. >> did you ever get involved in

selling stolen items? >> no. i don't know what this is about. i don't go anywhere. >> so you've never stolen a car or vehicle? >> no. i don't have a driver's license. >> you've never gone to a place to try sell a stolen vehicle? >> no. >> you're sure? >> yes. >> can i show you something? is that you right there? >> i've been driving it up and down boulder highway day and night. >> with her memory refreshed, she admits trying to sell the car. she says a male friend who was staying with her asked her to sell it for him. >> and that's you right there talking about driving around in a stolen vehicle. >> i mean, i didn't know if it was or not. it was my friend. i said i don't know. >> and she says the only way to get him out of the house was to go along. >> and he came over to my house and i couldn't get rid of him. couldn't get rid of him at all. >> so you decided to sell a stolen car for him to get rid of him? >> well, i didn't know if it was stolen or not. i didn't think that anybody would do that to me.

i have a kid. i just wanted him out of my life. you don't understand how bad this person was. he was a weirdo. walking around without his shirt on, acting like he lived there. >> that doesn't make it okay to sell a stolen car. >> i know that. i didn't know it was stolen, okay? i didn't know that. >> so you're a victim in all of this? >> yeah. yeah. >> how would you describe the situation you're in now? >> absolutely awful. i'd rather be dead than to be here right now. but i was worried about how my kid was going to be raised. and i am so sorry. if there's anything i could do to make up for it, i would be happy to. >> well, thank you for talking to us. i appreciate it. >> thanks. >> good luck with everything, okay? >> yeah, thanks. >> allison pleaded guilty and was sentenced to three years of probation. remember rusty? he showed police how to print bogus hundred dollar bills.

>> he's going westbound -- >> police picked him up days earlier on an outstanding drunk driving warrant. he has no idea anyone knows about his counterfeiting. >> we got him in custody. >> we were allowed into the jail to ask him some questions. >> hey, rusty, how are you? chris hanson with "dateline" nbc. have a seat there. >> remember, he thinks he's here on a dui. but police have allowed us to reveal we know all about his counterfeiting. he agrees to talk to me and at first denies it. >> did you go to a store front business and try to sell some counterfeit money? >> no, i didn't go to one, no. i mean, i did go to a store front business, but i didn't try to sell anything to them, like counterfeit money, no. >> and why did you go there? >> why did i go there? >> yeah. >> because they contacted me, wanting some information from me. >> and what kind of information did they want? >> about counterfeit money. >> did you tell them anything? >> yes. >> what did you tell them? >> showed them what somebody had

showed me, how to do it. >> do you know how to do counterfeit money? >> just from what i've read on the internet and stuff. >> for the first time, he's about to see evidence of his appearance inside the police sting. >> i have a videotape that i think you may want to see. can i play it for you? >> sure. >> okay. that is you right there. you seem to know an awful lot about counterfeit money right here. >> they showed me that. >> they showed you? >> they didn't show me. but i learned it on the internet and stuff like that. >> before this is all over, you produce a crisp 100 dollar bill. and you basically tell them how to do it, and then on top of that, how to pass this hundred dollar bill. how it works in casinos. how you can do it in a convenience store. >> right. >> how many of those hundred dollar bills have you made over the years? >> not many. >> not many? that's not what you said here. >> rusty now says he was just

blowing smoke. >> how much money in reality do you think you made? >> not jack [ bleep ]. no. seriously. >> give me a ballpark. >> nothing probably. i never would try. to look at them, they don't really look that real. >> but if they didn't look real, why did he say on hidden camera that he carries two wallets to tell the bills apart? >> i carry two wallets on me. >> how come you have one wallet for real money and one wallet for counterfeit money? >> that's b.s. also. >> there's a lot of b.s. floating around here. >> dealing with a lot of b.s. going around there. >> why do you get involved in this wise guy stuff? >> i don't know. it's stupidity. >> and now you're in jail now. this could potentially send you to jail for an even longer

period of time on allegations of forgery and burglary. >> yeah. i don't know. >> how do you get yourself into this position? how does it get here? >> i don't know. >> how did it come to this? >> i wish i could tell you. >> how would you characterize the situation you're in now? how would you describe it? >> it's [ bleep ] disgusting. >> was there anything else you want folks to know about what happened here? >> no. >> all right. thanks for your time. rusty has pleaded guilty to conspiracy, burglary and forgery. he was sentenced to one to three years in prison. remember cheryl miller, nicknamed chevy? she came into the store front to sell stolen cars. he was recently locked up for passing bad checks, and like rusty, doesn't know she was caught in a police sting. >> hey, sheryl? chris hanson. i'm with "dateline" nbc. how are you? >> i'm fine.

>> you don't have to do anything. i wanted to ask you a couple questions about an investigation we're doing a story on. can i show you a videotape i think you might like to see? >> sure. >> it doesn't take long for sheryl to realize she's in trouble. >> did you think it might have been an undercover operation? >> i did. >> did you help sell and find vehicles? >> yeah, i helped, yes. >> so you were a part of deal. >> yes. well, i just brought people there to do that. >> you were the middle man. >> yes. >> so to speak. so you had people who had vehicles and guns to sell. you knew of this place. you put the deal together. >> yes. >> does that make you just as guilty as the person who stole the car? >> absolutely. >> how did you end up in such a jam like that? >> well, when you're beating from ages 3 1/2 to 14, you don't

stand much of a case. >> i got pregnant with his baby when i was 13. just one of those. >> so what he did to you put you in a tough spot from the get-go? >> from the age of 14, i was on the streets. >> how do you survive at the age of 14 years old on the streets of las vegas? >> criminals raise you. you get raised by criminals here. >> she says she has three children and has been strung out on crystal meth for years. >> how do you break that cycle of crime? how do you finally get out of it? i'm guessing that you don't want to be here. >> you're asking a 40-year-old woman that has not broke the cycle. three children. care more about what i was doing and the drugs more than i did my own children. >> is it in some ways a relief to be in jail and away from that and that lifestyle? >> yeah, it is. my kids will graduate because

they're not out with me. >> how are they doing? >> fabulous. because i didn't raise them. >> do you talk to them at all? >> no. no. >> how hard is that for you in these long stretches of sobriety in jail to cope with the fact that you don't have a relationship with your kids? >> it tears you up inside. >> sheryl pleaded guilty and was sentenced to eight to 20 years in prison. >> sheryl, thanks so much. i appreciate it. stories like hers are not lost on sheriff doug gillespie. >> do you ever feel sorry for a person like that? >> you do. you do. it doesn't make what they've done right by any stretch. >> he says there are programs designed to help people like sheryl. >> in law enforcement, we don't look at it from the enforcement standpoint. we're looking from a prevention and education standpoint as well. if you do become addicted, here

are services that are available to you. you know, you have programs in place to give them opportunities to change their way of life. are there enough of those services? no. do we have to continue to work in that direction as well? yes. and i believe law enforcement is more engaged today than they ever have been, and those other aspects that impact what we do day-to-day. >> when people see this investigation and the unprecedented access, what do you think the takeaway should be? >> i think this reinforces to the public that we're just not out there driving around, that we are being proactive. we are being creative. and we are doing our level best to keep this community safe. >> and we'll continue to watch close up and undercover. you'll find more information about this