NNP

Embarrassed Chilean Mint chiefs have sacked their general manager after thousands of coins were made with the name of the country spelt incorrectly. Instead of 'Chile', the coins, minted in 2008, are marked 'Chiie'.

The 50-peso coins, worth about 6p, circulated through the South American country for a year before the error was noticed.

The mint said it has no plans to take the coins out of circulation, and eagle-eyed Chileans have begun hoarding the coins in the hope they rise in value as a collector's item. The mistake cost general manager Gregorio Iniguez and several other employees their jobs.

The discovery of the spelling error is not the first embarrassing blunder at the Chilean mint in recent times.

Last October, a staff member sold a rare medal, which should have been housed in the institution's museum, to a coin collector. A month later, another medal - this one bearing the face of the country's then President Michelle Bachelet - was inadvertently sold on the open market.

To read the complete article, see: Boss of Chilean mint fired after thousands of coins are issued bearing a howling error: 'C-H-I-I-E' (www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1250580/
Chile-mint-gets-country-wrong-coin.html)