A family of criminal jewellers who laundered £1.4m worth of gold have been jailed for a total of 20 years.

Brian Maltman, aged 55, his wife Kim Maltman, 56, and their son Daniel Maltman, 23, were found guilty by a jury at Maidstone Crown Court.

The trio, from Romford in east London, faced charges of money-laundering and conspiracy to handle stolen goods.

The charges came following two burglaries on May 24 last year in Rosedale Close, Dartford, and Main Road, Longfield.

Police said a Mini Cooper with fake registration plates used by the burglars had been involved in an accident in Romford on the same day.

The Mini left the scene of the crash and was abandoned on a nearby estate where a witness saw the suspects cleaning down the car and being picked up by a second vehicle, this one registered to the Maltman family.

The Mini had been stolen in Brentwood, Essex, a month earlier.

Police searched the Maltmans' address and found jewellery from the Dartford burglaries.

In a search of their business premises in London police found more stolen jewellery linked to burglaries outside of Kent.

Papers found showed the Maltmans had been doing business with a smelting company and were being paid large cash sums on a regular basis.

The family were arrested and bailed on suspicion of handling stolen goods and money-laundering.

Brian Maltman was arrested again in January after police found him in possession of gold with a commercial value of over £60,000.

Some of that gold was later identified as having come from burglaries in Essex and London.

Further investigation by Kent Police and Essex Police identified three burglars that the family had contact with.

Those three men were charged with various burglaries from which stolen jewellery was then passed onto the Maltman family before it was melted down.

These men will be sentenced later this week.

The Maltman family were sentenced on August 4 and upon sentencing the judge described their crimes as professional and said the family had been a magnet for criminality.

Brian Maltman was sentenced to 10 years in prison after a jury found him guilty on both charges. Kim Maltman was found guilty of money-laundering and was sentenced to four years in jail.

Daniel Maltman, was found guilty on both charges and was sentenced to six years in prison.

Investigating officer PC Dameon Shaw, of Kent Police, said: “This was a complex investigation which unravelled after the Mini Cooper was involved in a collision in Essex and spiralled into one of the most organised gold scams to date.

“The Maltmans used their family business to disguise their criminality and formed relationships with criminals who carried out offences across Kent and Essex in order to make significant amounts of money, causing fear among many families after their homes were broken into.”