A pensioner from Lower Sydenham who was discovered hiding in a wardrobe has been ordered to pay back more than a quarter of a million pounds.

Michael Kelly, formerly from Kangley Bridge Road, was jailed last January for four and a half years at the Old Bailey.

After a three week trial he was found guilty of cheating the public revenue after making false VAT repayment claims totalling more than £500,000 over six years.

MORE TOP STORIES Kelly, 74, was found hiding in a wardrobe in an attempt to avoid being discovered during an operation by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC).

On Friday (October 2) the Old Bailey granted a confiscation order requiring the pensioner to pay back £274,725 within three months.

If he fails to repay the criminal profits he faces a further two and half years behind bars.

Kevin Newe, assistant director of the fraud investigation service of the HMRC, said "Kelly was shameless in his attempts to obtain huge sums of money by fraud with no regard for the fact that he was stealing it from public services.”

Kelly, who was a company director, was also disqualified from holding the post for six years.