Young wins ACEF’s Kreuzer Award, Alleva wins Kaplan Award
Two individuals who have played key roles in combating counterfeiting during the past year were honored Aug. 12 during the Professional Numismatist Guild’s Awards Dinner in Rosemont, IL.
Jack D. Young was presented the Anti-Counterfeiting Educational Foundation’s Alan Kreuzer Memorial Award for his extensive work assisting researchers, third-party grading services, and law enforcement in the identification of deceptive fakes offered in the marketplace. Young, of Dayton, OH, is a specialist in early American copper coins and is founder of the Facebook counterfeit watch group, “The Dark Side,” that has discovered and documented more than 20 different recently struck counterfeit denominations and varieties. Young traveled to the nation’s capital at his own expense to help ACEF leaders brief Secret Service agents and Senate Finance Committee staffers regarding the extensive problems being created by counterfeits in the U.S. marketplace.
The Kreuzer Award is named after the late Alan “Al” Kreuzer who was instrumental in alerting the hobby about counterfeit third-party certification holders and fake insert labels.
PNG member and coin dealer Buddy Alleva of Massapequa, Long Island, NY, was presented the Sol Kaplan Award, to recognize his efforts and contributions in combatting crimes against the numismatic community. Alleva, a member of ACEF’s Expert Network, volunteered many hours during the past year assisting federal law enforcement agencies in the identification of tons of counterfeit coins arriving from China through the Port of Long Island.
The Sol Kaplan Award is jointly presented by the PNG and the Lewis M. Reagan Foundation, and is named after a former PNG President and Ohio dealer who was personally responsible for the apprehension of several people suspected of committing numismatic-related crimes.