Two men who were part of a scam which saw proficient speakers of English sit Secure English Language Test (SELT) examinations on behalf of foreign nationals have been sent to jail.

Mehboob Jilani and Muhammad Bilal were sentenced at a hearing in Preston, more than five years after investigations led by Immigration Enforcement Criminal and Financial Investigations (CFI) were conducted.

The men, along with two others, were managers at Secure English Language Test (SELT) centres and oversaw three Manchester colleges where widespread cheating on English language tests was uncovered.

Following a trial in April they were found guilty conspiracy to commit fraud for a scam that involved arranging for individuals who were proficient in the English language to repeatedly take SELT examinations on behalf of foreign nationals.

The fraudulently obtained qualifications would be used to support applications for student visas or jobs.

Prosecuting, Charlotte Kenny, said: "They all abused the trust of educational testing service, ETS. The fraud was sophisticated and required significant planning and the harm caused was high, resulting in ETS Global withdrawing from the UK market, with their reputations and the reputation of the Home Office being severely damaged."

The colleges – Innovative Learning Centre (ILC), Manchester College of Accountancy and Management (MANCAM) in Eccles and Apex College — were all accredited to deliver SELT tests on behalf of Educational Testing Services (ETS), a company itself licensed by the Home Office.

Evidence of cheating first surfaced when ETS conducted a series of unannounced inspection visits at the colleges in 2013.

Acting on this information, CFI investigators raided the three colleges in December, 2014.

This was part of a UK-wide investigation into suspected abuse of the English language testing system.

The CFI investigation which followed exposed systematic cheating.

Investigators found that mobile phones belonging to the defendants contained hundreds of incriminating text messages organising and discussing the use of ‘pilots’, who would be brought in to sit the examinations on the behalf of others.

Defending, barristers Frida Hussain for Bilal, and Ahmed Nadim for Jilani said that both their clients were of good character and had families who relied on them financially, and a custodial sentence would impact on their lives significantly.

Sentencing, Judge Jonathon Gibson said: "Your behaviour contributed to ETS having to withdraw from the UK market

"So far as your own gain is concerned the profits were in the region of £340,000."

Bilal, 36, of Bottomley Side, Swinton, was sentenced to two years in prison and Jilani, 33, of Brown Lane, Stockport, was sentenced to four years in prison.

Two other men involved in the conspiracy, Jawaid Iqbal and Shahidul Alam, were not present in court and will be sentenced at a later date.