A former Ukip and Conservative MP has been sentenced to six months imprisonment, suspended for two years, after being found guilty of tricking elderly constituents into signing electoral forms backing local candidates.
Bob Spink, who served as Tory MP for Castle Point in Essex for five years before defecting to Ukip in 2008, was found guilty at Southwark Crown Court of four counts of submitting false signatures on nomination forms, a type of electoral fraud.
Bob Spink and James Parkin have both been sentenced to six months in prison, suspended for two years. They will have to do 150 hours of unpaid work. #electionfraud https://t.co/toMBMyl7Mg
— CPS (@cpsuk) January 5, 2018
Spink, 69, of Benfleet in Essex, was also ordered to carry out 150 hours of unpaid work and pay £5,000 towards prosecution costs.
James Parkin, 39, from Canvey Island in Essex, Ukip’s election agent at the time, was found guilty of two counts of the same offence, and found not guilty of three. He had already admitted two counts.
He was given the same sentence.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel