Cameroon man faces life imprisonment in Myanmar for forgery

Cameroon man faces life imprisonment in Myanmar

YANGON, Myanmar — A Cameroon football player who sought refuge at the French Embassy in Myanmar’s main city could face life imprisonment on charges of forging currency notes, a newspaper said Monday.

The man, who was not named, fled temporarily to the embassy in Yangon last Tuesday as he was being taken to court by police. He surrendered to police a short time later.

The man and a friend had been charged with counterfeiting currency notes, which carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment, the local Weekly News journal said.

The two men had come to Myanmar to play with local football clubs. After failing to secure contracts, the two lived in a downtown hotel where they were allegedly counterfeiting U.S. currency, the report said.

They were arrested after the hotel manager informed local authorities.