Six jailed for election fraud

Six men have been jailed for election fraud, following a council vote in Slough, Berkshire in 2007 when Labour councillor Lydia Simmons lost her seat to Conservative candidate Raja Khan.

Mr Khan and two co-conspirators pleaded guilty to the charges. Three other men were found guilty by the court. The court heard the group, all from Slough, created hundreds of false names in the weeks leading up to the election, which were subsequently entered into the voting register.

The men were sentenced to jail terms of between four months and four and a half years at Reading Crown Court. Mr Khan was jailed for three and half years after admitting conspiracy to defraud the returning officer and perjury. He had already been expelled from the Conservative party. Gul Nawaz Khan, 58, pleaded guilty to perjury and was jailed for eight months. Mohammed Basharat Khan, 46, admitted conspiracy to defraud the returning officer and conspiracy to pervert the course of justice. He was jailed for three years and four months.

Arshad Raja, 53, was found guilty of conspiracy to defraud the returning officer. He was jailed for 18-months. Mahboob Khan, 46, was convicted of conspiracy to defraud, conspiracy to pervert the course of justice and perjury. He was jailed for four-and-a-half years.

Altaf Khan, 32, was found guilty of impersonation but not guilty of conspiracy to defraud the returning officer. He was jailed for four months.