Two jailed over fake money

The Senior Resident Magistrate Court in Zomba has sentenced two people for being found with counterfeit money.

The two are Alex Nyirenda aged 25 who has been sentenced to five years in prison and Benjamin Pofera who has been handed a four year jail term.
Police say Pofera was arrested at Masaula trading centre last year with fake K2,000 notes amounting to K56,000.

This was discovered when Benjamin Pofera used a fake K2,000 note to buy items at Masaula.

Pofera revealed to have taken the money from Alex Nyirenda who was later arrested at Chirimba with a desktop computer and a printer plus fake K1,000 notes amounting to K116,000, fake K2,000 notes amounting to K80,000 and papers believed to have been used for making the notes.

After the two were convicted by the court, state prosecutor Gomezgani Mchawi prayed to the court to give a custodial sentence to the convicts because the consequences of circulation of fake currency are huge on the economic development of the country as it leads to depreciation of the Kwacha on the market.

Furthermore, Mchawi said the fake currency was actually in circulation and that Alex Nyirenda is a repeat offender having been arrested and sentenced to 6 months by another court.

The court then sentenced Nyirenda to five years in prison for making or being in possession of papers or implements for forgery without lawful excuse and four years for being found in possession of forged bank notes.

Pofera was sentenced to 48 months IHL for the offence of being found in possession of forged bank notes.

He was also slapped with another 48 months for the offence of using fake bank notes.
All sentences will run concurrently.