A GANG of Romanian fraudsters, who set up sophisticated spying equipment at Tonbridge cash machines before fleecing users of their money, has been jailed.

Maidstone Crown Court heard the devious trio installed false fascias at cash points across the South East.

The officer leading the investigation, Det Con Richard Higham, said: "These people were members of a group responsible for amassing a large amount of money from other people's bank accounts.

"They paid no regard to the inconvenience, and indeed distress, caused to people who had their cards taken.

"The ease with which they managed to take some people's cards is a reminder to us all to follow simple steps and check there is nothing untoward with a cash machine before using it."

One of the venues targeted was the Barclays Bank in Tonbridge High Street.

David Moldovan, 49, of East Ham, was sentenced to four years, Georgeta Neferu, 27, address not known, was sentenced to two-and-a-half years and Florian Claudiu, 24, also of East Ham, was also sentenced to two-and-a-half years.

They manufactured a false front that could be placed over the card slot on the cash point. A mobile phone camera was attached above the keypad, hidden inside a case painted in the colour of the machine.

A small hole in it let the camera capture and record the ATM user as they entered their PIN.

The false front prevented the return of the card. The ATM user would think their card had been 'swallowed' by the machine and leave.

The trio would then remove the equipment and take the trapped card.

Using the PIN recorded by the camera, the cards could be used to withdraw cash from any other machine, often just before and just after midnight to take the maximum cash allowed for two days.

Moldovan, Neferu and Claudiu were arrested in Tonbridge High Street on the night of October 16 having been seen acting suspiciously by CCTV operators.

Among the items in their possession were a list of addresses of banks across the South East, mobile phone cameras painted in ATM colours, plastic devices designed to look like card slots, glue and double-sided sticky tape.

When officers searched Moldovan's home, they discovered what was described in court as "a small factory producing the equipment needed to successfully steal credit cards and record their PIN numbers".

The trio pleaded guilty to charges of possession of articles for use in fraud and conspiracy to steal.

Det Con Higham received a commendation from the presiding judge for his work in this case.