US engineer charged over fake dollars

Mr Andrew Ryan Gustafson consults his lawyer, Mr Isaac Walukagga at Buganda Road Court yesterday. He is facing charges of printing fake dollars. PHOTO BY ABUBAKER LUBOWA.

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Arrested. The American was last Thursday arrested over printing fake dollars at his home in Namugongo, Wakiso District.

KAMPALA. The Buganda Road Magistrates’ Court yesterday charged and remanded to Luzira prison an American engineer with forgery of dollar currency notes.
Mr Ryan Gustafson, alias Jack Ferrel, was charged alongside, Christopher Kojo with five counts of being in possession of forged currency notes, unlawful possession of ammunition, conspiracy to commit an offence and selling articles bearing designs in imitation of currency notes.
They appeared before Grade One Magistrate Joan Aciro who adjourned the matter to tomorrow after the suspects denied the offences.
Mr Gustafson is also independently charged with another count of illegal entry into Uganda which he denied.
Prosecution states that on December 11, Mr Gustafson and Mr Kojo in Kampala and Namugongo in Wakiso District, without lawful excuse, had in their possession more than 6,000 fake currency notes of 50 and 100 dollar denominations of United States of America.
They were also found selling forged currencies.
It is further stated that the duo in December at Mbalwa village in Wakiso District were found selling the forged dollar currencies and articles bearing designs in imitation of dollar currency notes which were unlawfully in their possession.
The suspects were also without lawful excuse found in possession of a bullet.
Earlier on, the State asked court for permission to conduct a deeper search into money printing machines and other exhibits that were recently recovered from the duo.

Details

Dollars in circulation. Police records indicate that by the time of the suspects arrest last Thursday, he had printed more than $1b (about Shs2.7 trillion) worth of black dollars and were already in circulation.