A 44-year-old man was served a fresh warrant Monday for allegedly making and spending thousands of fake 5,000 yen notes, local police said.

Takeshi Asakura, of no fixed address, is believed to have spent some 1,800 counterfeit notes, or 38 percent of all bogus 5,000 yen bills found nationwide since 1999.

Asakura allegedly used a personal computer and printer to produce about 2,000 fake 5,000 yen notes at an apartment in Chuo Ward, Osaka, between February 2000 and last April.

He used three of the notes at three locations, including a bookstore in Nagahama, Shiga Prefecture, around March, police said.

Asakura was initially arrested in August for using a fake 10,000 yen note at a bookstore in Otsu, Shiga Prefecture. A search of his former home and other locations turned up a total of roughly 600 fake 10,000 yen and 5,000 yen notes.

Investigators said they suspect Asakura also spent around 200 of the fake 10,000 yen notes.