Tycoon Asil Nadir transferred to Turkish prison

A tycoon jailed for stealing millions from his business empire has been removed from the UK to be transferred to prison in Turkey.

Asil Nadir was convicted in August 2012 of 10 charges of theft amounting to £28.8 million from his Polly Peck International (PPI) business empire in the late 1980s.

He was jailed for 10 years after a trial at the Old Bailey, and ordered to pay £5 million in compensation.

After repaying the money, as well as £2 million in legal aid, Nadir was flown out of Britain on Thursday, the Ministry of Justice said.

A spokesman said: "It is right that foreign criminals are properly punished but not at the expense of British taxpayers.

"This Government is committed to removing foreign criminals to their own countries.

"Since Asil Nadir has now repaid the £2m he owed the Legal Aid Agency, plus £5m in compensation he paid earlier, arrangements were made with the Turkish government for his removal as part of our Prisoner Transfer Agreement."

The former fugitive fled Britain for his native Northern Cyprus in May 1993 but returned voluntarily in August 2010 to face trial.

He had been a wealthy man and had an extravagant lifestyle when he stole millions from his business empire.

Following Nadir's conviction of 10 counts of theft from PPI between 1987 and 1990, Judge Mr Justice Holroyde told him: "It seems to me that you already had an extravagant lifestyle as a result of your success in business.

"It follows that you were a wealthy man who stole out of pure greed."

Four months after his conviction he was ordered, despite his claims that he was penniless, to pay back some of the millions that he stole or face more time behind bars.