The Suva’s High Court has convicted a 29-year-old man to 18 months imprisonment, after the accused pleaded guilty to eight counts of counterfeiting currency notes and three counts of uttering counterfeit currency notes.
The accused, Isaiah Homes, appeared before High Court Judge Justice Daniel Goundar last Friday.
In passing his judgement on the matter, Justice Goundar said the accused had sorted the clemency from the Court and not for a conviction to be recorded against Homes.
Justice Goundar said Section 15 of the Sentencing Penalties Act gives the court discretion to dismiss proceedings without a conviction-Section 16 of the Sentencing and Penalties Act sets out the factors that the Court must consider when exercising that discretion.
He said Section 17 of the Act gives the Court the power to impose an aggregate sentence of imprisonment when an offender is convicted for more than one offence founded on the same facts.
Justice Goundar said all eleven counts of counterfeiting and uttering are founded on the same facts.
The Court heard at the time of the offence, the accused was employed by Goodman Fielder International (Fiji) PTE Limited as a Transport Officer.
Early this year, Homes used a genuine Fijian $100 denomination currency note to make nine copies of the same note using a printer and photocopier machine.
Later that night, the accused assembled the notes by cutting the copies and gluing the front and back of the notes together.
Homes then ironed the notes to make them appear genuine.
Justice Goundar then said that the next day, the accused hosted a farewell dinner party at their home in Delainavesi for some friends.
He said after dinner, Homes left his home with his wife and friends for a nightclub in Suva. When he arrived at his destination, Homes gave the counterfeit note to one of his friends to pay for the taxi fare.
The taxi driver thought the note was counterfeit and refused to accept it.
The accused then went to a nightclub with his friends and wife and gave the counterfeit note to one of his friends to buy alcohol for the group.
Homes has been given 30-days to appeal his sentencing.
