Playboy fraudster Zahid Khan was busted as he tried to smuggle illegal Afghan immigrants into the UK - in the back of his tyre lorry.
The conman had travelled to Europe on the pretence of buying stock for his Sparkhill company, Bulls and Horses Tyres, based in Stratford Road. But when his lorry returned to Dover off a P&O ferry customs officials swooped - and discovered five Afghan nationals.
The men and women were hiding within the tyres in the truck.
Zahid Khan, 32, had driven a BMW over to the continent in convoy with the lorry and was arrested in Dover along with his brother Aamir Khan and another man, Dharmendra Singh.
The three men were found guilty of conspiring/assisting in unlawful immigration into the UK.
Khan had fled the country before the case started at Canterbury Crown Court. He was sentenced to 30 months.
A local media outlet has now discovered that Khan, 32, took a flight to Dubai just days before the summer trial had ended. He later posted pictures of himself seemingly in Mumbai on his Facebook page - where he has aimed abuse at legal officials after claiming he did not get a fair trial.
Back in June he was sentenced to ten years jail in his absence over a £500,000 number plate fraud. He had gone on the run before the fraud trial ended - and posted messages to the judge on Facebook claiming he had not had a fair hearing.
Aamir Khan, 25, was sentenced to 30 months for the illegal immigrant scam. He was also jailed for a total of four-and-a-half years over his part in the number plate scam.
Dharmendra Singh was sentenced to 18 months jail for his part in the illegal immigrant smuggling.
The smuggling bid took place on November 8, 2015.
Singh and Amir were in the lorry which was stopped at the port.
Zahid Khan was stopped in a separate BMW.
In June 2016 Khan said tyre-fitting business was destroyed by ‘jealous’ arsonists - and later claimed he was spending £100,000 to reopen it.
The conman claimed he had renovated and refitted his Bulls and Horses Auto Centre after the supposed attack. He also claimed his business was torched in the early hours of February 12. He offered a £25,000 reward, but no-one was arrested.
