A porn magazine and DVD distributor has been jailed after fraudulently claiming £75,000 in VAT repayments.

Kenneth Drake, 55, from Chatham, Kent, pleaded guilty to submitting false VAT repayment claims to HMRC by providing fake documentation to support claims about buying and selling adult magazines and films for his company 'Top Shelf'. He was sentenced to 16 months in prison.

Martin Brown, Assistant Director, HMRC Criminal Investigation said: 'Drake got greedy and today's sentence is a warning to anyone considering committing this type of fraud. HMRC are clamping down on VAT fraudsters, and we are investing more time and resources than ever to identify tax cheats and bring them to justice.'

HMRC officers discovered that Drake had claimed to have paid VAT on goods purchased from three companies that didn't exist. When questioned, he admitted to creating the false paperwork to claim the fraudulent VAT repayments.

He pleaded guilty to VAT fraud offences in July at a previous hearing, and was sentenced at Lewes Crown Court on 23 August.