SINGAPORE - A man who used fake $100 currency notes to pay for cigarettes and created a counterfeit $50 note was jailed for 3½ years on Thursday (Nov 24).

Sasi Kumar Lakshmanan, 29, who faced four charges, pleaded guilty to using a fake $100 note to pay for $22 worth of cigarettes at a coffee shop in Lorong Lew Lian; as well as for making a $50 note at his home.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Magdalene Huang said Sasi Kumar decided to print some counterfeit currency notes as he was in financial difficulty and owed loan sharks more than $5,000.

On July 11, he took a $100 note and placed it on a printer. He realised that the colour of the photocopied $100 note was almost the same as that of the genuine one. He also adjusted the colour of the photocopied $100 note and made five to six copies.

He finally managed to produce a photocopied $100 note which closely resembled a genuine $100 note. He printed another four copies of the note and cut them out.

The next day, he produced a fake $100 note at Foodpark coffee shop at Block 2, Lorong Lew Lian, to pay for two packets of cigarettes totalling $21.80. He pocketed the $78.20 in change.

The fake note was discovered in the coffee shop cash register by a stall supervisor, who made a police report on July 13.

Police raided Sasi Kumar's home in Lorong Lew Lian and found, among other things, the fake $50 note.

Sasi Kumar said in his written mitigation plea that he has two sons and another on the way. He said he had just found a job doing deliveries for a friend.

Two other charges of using a fake $100 note and having instruments for making them were taken into consideration.

He could have been jailed for up to 20 years and fined on each charge.