by Paul Hooper

The director of a Folkestone company has been jailed for more than three years for his part in a complex £50m VAT scam.

Michael Turner, 32, admitted cheating the Revenue out of duties between 2007 and 2008 - and was jailed for 38 months.

Judge Michael O'Sullivan said he had "buried his head in the sand and closed his eyes to what was going on".

Two other men have been found guilty on a similar charge after a three-month trial at Canterbury Crown Court.

Turner, of Merchant Place, Rendezvous Street, was a a director of Keytrades (Europe) Limited and was £5000 for each fraud, the court heard.

The jury was told that it was "one of the main companies" involved in a trading chain designed to divert duties from drink and alcohol sales away from the revenue.

Davinder Dhaliwal, also 32, of Langdale Gardens, Dartford, was jailed for 16 months after he admitted a similar charge.

The brains behind the fraud Kevin Burrage, 49, of Shoeburyness, Southend and brother-in-law Gary Clarke, 55, of Thorpe Bay, Southend both denied the charge but were convicted. Burrage was jailed for 10 years and Clarke for six years nine months.

The prosecution said the scheme involved diverting alcohol from bonded warehouses into the domestic market without duties being paid.

A fifth man, Stephen Debruin, 52, of Hornchurch, Essex was found not guilty of cheating after a jury considered its verdict for nearly 27 hours.

After the case, the judge praised Dover-based Customs boss Chris Turner and his four-strong team for their "impressive" investigation.