Man jailed after he lodged almost €100,000 in counterfeit cheques

By Jessica Magee

A man who lodged ten counterfeit cheques worth nearly €100,000 was caught by gardaí driving a Jaguar and carrying another fake cheque.

Michael Tuzuka (46) of Orchard Drive, Stamullen, Co Meath, pleaded guilty to eleven counts of using false instruments, to wit counterfeit cheques, on dates between March and April 2018.

At a sitting of Dublin Circuit Criminal Court yesterday, the court heard that Tuzuka lodged the false AIB cheques at branches of Permanent TSB in Drumcondra, Swords, and Malahide in Co Dublin, and in Ashbourne, Co Meath and Drogheda, Co Louth.

The court heard that Tuzuka lodged the cheques at bank facilities without interacting with bank staff and that software on the machines identified the dodgy cheques and froze them.

Judge Martin Nolan handed Tuzuka a three-year sentence, describing him as a “clever man, who sometimes applies his cleverness and intelligence to criminal enterprise”.

“But like us all, this defendant was defeated by the software,” quipped Judge Nolan, noting that Tuzuka had been apprehended while driving a Jaguar to another bank.

Garda Gerard Carmody told Breffni Gordon BL, prosecuting, that gardaí were contacted by officials from Permanent TSB on April 12, 2018.

Gardaí identified Tuzuka on bank CCTV making the various lodgements and discovered the general area where he was living, although they didn’t have an exact address.

Gda Carmody said himself and a colleague drove around the area for a number of days and identified Tuzuka driving a Jaguar at about 1am.

He cooperated with gardaí but nothing of evidential value arose in interview.

The court heard that the cheques were worth a combined total of €98,250 but that as they were immediately identified as counterfeit, no loss was incurred.

Tuzuka has 11 previous convictions, including for theft, threatening and abusive behaviour, failure to comply and making a gain for himself.

The court heard he previously served a three-year sentence, during which he contracted TB in prison.

Padraig Dwyer SC, defending, said Tuzuka arrived in Ireland from Zimbabwe in 2002 and is married to an Irish nurse, with two children.

Mr Dwyer pointed out that Tuzuka was an enhanced prisoner when he served his sentence and that he has not come before the courts since 2010.

Counsel said Tuzuka struggled to find work on his release from prison and got tempted to get involved in this string of transactions with the intention of supporting his family.

He is extremely embarrassed and ashamed to have put his family in the position where he is facing custody, the court heard.

Counsel asked the court to place the offence at the lower end of the scale, given that nobody was swindled and no money was lost.

Judge Nolan said Tuzuka was a “perfectly sociable” man, with a family and a work history, who had engaged in a classic white-collar crime.