Burnsville Coin Dealer Sold Fakes: Federal Indictment

BURNSVILLE, MN — The Minnesota Commerce Department announced that a Burnsville coin dealer, Barry Ron Skog, 67, has been indicted in U.S. District Court on five counts of sale of counterfeit coins and one count of mail fraud.

According to the federal indictment, from June 2012 through October 2016, Skog devised a scheme to advertise and sell counterfeit coins by fraudulently representing that they were legitimate U.S. coins worth hundreds of dollars.

According to the indictment, Skog owned and operated a business called Burnsville Coin Company. Through his business, he posted advertisements for coins in the publication Numismatic News. When victims responded to the ads, Skog would mail them lists of available coins for purchase, many of which were counterfeit, police said.

In his communications with the victims, Skog often represented himself as an employee of the Burnsville Coin Company named “Ron Peterson,” when, in fact, there are no other owners or employees of the company other than Skog, according to authorities.

In total, Skog fraudulently obtained more than $80,000 from his victims, investigators said.

Based on evidence obtained in this case, authorities believe there may be additional victims who have not yet been identified. Anyone with information about this matter is encouraged to call the Minnesota Commerce Fraud Bureau at (651) 539-1617. Callers may remain anonymous.

This case is the result of an investigation conducted by the Minnesota Commerce Fraud Bureau and the Burnsville Police Department, and it is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

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