A con artist who engaged in mortgage fraud with houses across south east London and north Kent has been ordered to repay more than half a million pounds.

Ruth Smith-Ajala, 46, was jailed for five years in December 2013 after she was found guilty of conspiracy to launder money and mortgage fraud.

On Monday (September 14) a judge at The Old Bailey ordered her to repay £630,000 after she scammed students out of more than £1.5 million.

The mortgage fraud relates to seven houses across south east London and north Kent, including in Gravesend, Northfleet and Catford, which she rented out.

MORE TOP STORIES The Crown Prosecution Service obtained a restraint order for the houses and her bank accounts were frozen, stopping her from selling the houses and pocketing the money.

The Nigerian national, from Lambeth, will now have to sell the houses and use the profits and rent to repay the money.

Detective Inspector Pete Ward, of the Met’s central criminal finance team, said: "We won’t stop at seeing criminals convicted for their crimes - we will also make them pay back the money they have taken from their victims.

"It is ironic that Smith-Ajala helped defraud hundreds of students while paying for one of her own children to be privately educated.”

She has three months to repay the sum or faces a further five years behind bars.