A 51-year-old Poulsbo man has been charged in Kitsap County District Court with unlawful issuance of a bank check, a felony, after he allegedly wrote a $5,000 check on a Bainbridge business account that he knew couldn’t be cashed.

Kevin Donald Norris was arrested and booked into Kitsap County Jail on Monday, March 24.

According to a statement of probable cause in the case, Norris wrote a check for $5,000 on a Wells Fargo account on Feb. 11 to cover a civil matter between himself and another man. The check was written on an account for Ray’s Automotive, according to court records, and Norris had signing authority on the account as an owner.

The check was deposited twice and there were insufficient funds in the account to pay the check, according to court records.

Records also state that 15 checks were written on the account in January, and 23 checks were written on the account in February, and the account balance was too small to cover the 38 checks. Fees for insufficient funds for those checks totaled $2,520.

Norris allegedly admitted in an interview with police that he knew he did not have the money in the bank for the $5,000 check but wrote it to keep the recipient “from bugging him about the payment,” according to the statement of probable cause.

Norris also allegedly told the Bainbridge officer that he had put a stop payment order on the check and admitted that “it was a stupid thing to do.”

Bail has been set at $5,000.

Unlawful issuance of a bank check carries a maximum five-year prison term and $10,000 fine upon conviction.