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Prevention of Counterfeiting of Currency Act, 1965 (Act No. 16 of 1965)

2. Offences relating to current coin and bank notes

 

Any person who—

(a) counterfeits or performs any part of the process of counterfeiting any current coin;
(b) forges or alters a bank note;
(c) utters, tenders or accepts any counterfeit coin, knowing it to be counterfeit, or a forged or altered bank note, knowing it to be forged or altered;
(d) without lawful authority or excuse—
(i) has in his or her possession any counterfeit coin or any forged or altered bank note;
(ii) imports or receives into the Republic any counterfeit coin or any forged or altered bank note; or
(iii) exports from the Republic or puts or takes or causes to be put or taken on board any ship, vessel, boat, aircraft or vehicle for the purpose of being so exported, any counterfeit coin or any forged or altered bank note;

[Section 2(d) substituted by section 2 of Act 34 of 1998]

(e) with intent to counterfeit current coin or to forge a bank note, makes, mends, obtains, has in his possession or disposes of any tool, instrument or machine—
(i) intended for making any counterfeit coin or forged bank note;
(ii) intended for the marking of coin round the edges with letters, grainings or other marks or figures resembling letters, grainings, marks or figures round the edges of any current coin; or
(iii) capable of being used for preparing any material for receiving any impression resembling that on any current coin;
(f) gilds, silvers or colours any piece of metal of a size or figure fit to be coined, for the purpose of coining it into counterfeit coin;
(g) makes any piece of metal into a size or figure fit to be coined, with intent to facilitate the coining therefrom of counterfeit coin or for the purpose of coining therefrom counterfeit coin;
(h) buys, sells or is in possession of a piece of metal referred to in paragraph (f) or (g) for a purpose referred to therein;
(i) impairs, diminishes or lightens any current coin with intent that such coin when so impaired, diminished or lightened may pass as current coin;
(j) without lawful authority or excuse has in his possession or disposes of or in any way deals with any filing or clipping, or any gold or silver bullion, or any gold or silver in dust, solution or otherwise, produced or obtained by impairing, diminishing or lightening current coin, knowing that it has been so produced or obtained;
(k) with intent to defraud, utters, tenders, disposes of or otherwise uses as current coin any medal or piece of metal which is not current coin;
(l) without lawful authority or excuse defaces any current coin by stamping thereon any word, letter, device or mark,

shall be guilty of an offence and liable on conviction—

(i) in the case of an offence referred to in paragraph (a), (b), (c), (e), (f), (g) or (i), to imprisonment for a period not exceeding fifteen years;
(ii) in the case of an offence referred to in paragraph (d) or (h), to imprisonment for a period not exceeding five years;
(iii) in the case of an offence referred to in paragraph (j), to imprisonment for a period not exceeding three years; and
(iv) in the case of an offence referred to in paragraph (k) or (l), to imprisonment for a period not exceeding twelve months.