AN OSWESTRY woman gasped as she was spared prison for using counterfeit money to buy Champagne before returning it later and taking home genuine banknotes.

Ann Marie Clark, 50 and of Upper Brook Street, Oswestry, "laundered" the fake money by buying expensive bottles, before returning them to the shop with a cover story, and taking home real notes.

was sentenced to 16 months – suspended for two years after a jury found her guilty of eight charges – four apiece of tendering a counterfeit note and dishonesty making false representation – in Mold Crown Court.

The offence took place in Oswestry in December, 2018 and she had previously pleaded not guilty, leading to a trial last month.

Judge Niclas Parry, passing sentence on Clark, heard again that it was confirmed in her trial – which he oversaw – that the defendant used fake notes to purchase expensive champagne.

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She then returned to get a refund for the champagne, which she received in genuine notes, using a story that she had been disciplined by a boss for purchasing a bottle that was too expensive.

There were four charges of using counterfeit money and four consequential charges of dishonestly making false representation to make a gain or cause another loss.

Judge Parry admitted to the defendant that he had taken the length of time between offence and court into mitigation and that she had not offended before or since.

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He also explained the difference between blame and harm, stating that her use of notes showed blame but the value of the notes adding up to around £100 meant it was low harm.

However, he said that he could not give her credit, because of her not guilty plea, and added that she as a businesswoman, should have known the impact of using fake notes.

He added: “You’ve been convicted at trial after overwhelming evidence of repeated offending of passing counterfeit currency and then duping staff into a refund.

“You were laundering counterfeit currency.

“I can’t give you any credit for pleading guilty and the jury saw through your story immediately.

“As a businesswoman yourself you know the damage that counterfeit money does to business in the country.

“One mitigation is that we’re in March 2023 and we’re talking about an offence that happened in December 2018.”

Clark was sentenced to 16 months, suspended for two years, for counts one, three, five and seven – all use of counterfeit notes – concurrently and no separate penalty for the remaining offences.

She was also sentenced to 150 hours of unpaid work, at seven hours a day, and will complete 10 days of rehabilitation activity.

There will be a further hearing on Monday, September 18 to confirm costs and set out repayments under the Proceeds of Crime Act.