***STOP PRESS*** First Bribery Act sentencing

A former magistrates' court clerk has become the first person to be sentenced under the UK Bribery Act, after he admitted accepting a £500 bribe to "get rid" of a speeding charge.

Munir Patel was sentenced to six years in prison at Southwark Crown Court after pleading guilty to bribery and misconduct in public office during his employment as an administrative clerk at London's Redbridge Magistrates' Court.

He was handed a three-year sentence under the Bribery Act and a six-year sentence for misconduct in public office. The two sentences will run concurrently, resulting in six years imprisonment.

Patel accepted the bribe in exchange for omitting to record a traffic offence on a court database and has been prosecuted under Section 2 of the Bribery Act for requesting and receiving a bribe intending to improperly perform his functions, as well as misconduct in public office.

For more information on the Bribery Act, please see our checklist, or email us at k.mcphie@endeavourpartnership.com