Conmen sat driving tests for others

THREE conmen behind a £2,000-a-time driving test scam have been jailed.

The crooks posed as test candidates and sat both the theory and practical parts of the exam for a string of unlicensed drivers before they were rumbled in July 2015.

The gang charged £2,000 a test to impersonate people who had provided their details.

They included Lovepreet Khalon, 25, of Oxhill Road, Handsworth.

He was jailed for 15 months after admitting conspiracy, fraud by ten counts of false representation and a bail offence.

Khalon also asked for three other cases of false representation to be taken into consideration.

Ahmed Mukhtar, 25, of Court Crescent, Slough, was jailed for 28 months, reduced to 21 months, after admitting conspiracy. And Hardeep Tiwana Singh, 36, of Cranbourne Waye, Hayes, was jailed for ten months after admitting fraud, by eight counts of false representation.

He asked for ten other cases of false representation to be taken into consideration.

A fourth man, Sakater Singh, 26, of Elliman Avenue, Slough, is on the run after previously admitting conspiracy.

He failed to appear at the sentencing hearing at Reading Crown Court and a warrant for his arrest was issued.

The sentences were welcomed by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency, which investigated the gang with Thames Valley Police.

Andy Rice, DVSA head of counter fraud and investigations, said: “The driving test is there to ensure that all drivers have the skills and knowledge to use the roads safely and responsibly.

“Anyone who tries to circumvent this process is putting innocent road users at risk.”