A crook was caught with wads of counterfeit £20 notes stashed in his socks and they all had a hilarious spelling mistake in the word ' pound '. William Hickson, 33, was found with £820 in his socks, but the cash wasn't stolen or otherwise ill-gotten - it was hidden because it was completely fake.
The paper money looked incredibly convincing, but eagle-eyed police officers knew it was fake because of one tiny detail - the word 'pound' had been spelt wrong. The criminal who had made the notes had missed out the 'u' and added another 'o', so these were £20 'poond' notes.
What do you think about the spelling mistake? Let us know in the comments...
Newcastle Crown Court heard that Hickson had been arrested for a separate charge when he was searched by police and the counterfeit money was discovered, as prosecutor Andrew Finlay explained.
He added that police instantly knew the money was fake, adding: "There was £820, 41 notes in total. They all had the same serial number.
"The notes were examined by an expert from the Bank of England, who confirmed they were not real."
Hickson admitted to possessing counterfeit currency.
Rachel Hedworth, for Hickson, said: "He has accepted he was in simple possession of them and accepted he would have gone on to use them, had he had the opportunity."
Rachel Hedworth, defending, said Hickson has suffered "significant adversity" in his life and added: "He has accepted he was in simple possession of them and accepted he would have gone on to use them, had he had the opportunity."
Miss Hedworth said Hickson had not realised the notes were fake when he got them but added: "After a period of time he did realise that they were."
Recorder Jason Pitter KC told Hickson: "You were arrested and in your possession was £820 cash. All of that money was counterfeit. There were 41 notes in total. That is a very serious offence, which for obvious reasons crosses the custody threshold. The existence of counterfeit money undermines the economic system."
The court heard Hickson is not heavily convicted and has a history of mental health problems. He was sentenced to 23 months imprisonment, suspended for 18 months, with rehabilitation requirements and a year long curfew between 8pm and 6am.
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