A Greenwich man has been jailed for his part in an “elaborate” £1 million train ticket fraud in which a stolen machine was used to forge tickets.

Robertas Vaitkevicius, of Uplands Close, was one member of a five-person gang who sold around 15,000 fake weekly zone 1-6 travelcards between January 2012 and October 2013 when they were arrested.

The 36-year-old was sentenced at Blackfriars’ Crown Court on May 9 to two years in prison after previously admitting conspiracy to defraud.

The fraud was first discovered after a vigilant inspector seized two tickets when passengers could not answer basic questions about how they were bought.

Detective Inspector Chris Neeson, from British Transport Police’s (BTP) ticket fraud squad, said: “This was an elaborate and complex fraud.

“The use of a real ticket machine meant these fake tickets appeared completely genuine and would even open automatic ticket barriers.

“Ticket fraud is very damaging to the railway network. It’s not just profoundly unfair to the millions of people who pay to travel every day, it also means less revenue available for vital improvement works.

"The sentence sends a clear message that ticket fraud is a serious offence that will not be tolerated.”

The sentencing followed a lengthy joint investigation between BTP, Abellio Greater Anglia and London Underground.