2005-11-11 20:02 A 42-year-old woman and a 52-year-old man, were sentenced to 16 and 30 months' imprisonment respectively for counterfeit banknotes related offences at the District Court today (November 11). The court heard that the 42-year-old Filipino woman was arrested by patrolling Police officers in Central after she attempted to pass off two counterfeit $500 banknotes to buy some snacks in two shops on February 10, 2005. Upon searches, she was also found in possession of 11 other counterfeit banknotes. Further investigations revealed that a 52-year-old Pakistani man had assisted her in collecting the counterfeit banknotes in Shenzhen. The man was deported twice back to Lahore in 2001 and 2002 and was thus arrested by officers of the Commercial Crime Bureau in his residence in Tsim Sha Tsui for breach of Deportation Order and unlawfully remaining in Hong Kong. The duo was subsequently charged. On October 28, the 42-year-old woman was convicted of two counts of passing counterfeit currency notes and one count of custody of counterfeit currency notes while the 52-year-old man was convicted of one count of breach of Deportation Order and one count of unlawfully remaining in Hong Kong. The woman was sentenced to a total of 16 months' imprisonment while the man was sentenced to a total of 30 months' imprisonment at the District Court today. |