59 year-old Graham Leather was sentenced during a ten-week trial at Southwark Crown Court, along with 27 year-old Zhiwei Fan, who was also given four and a half years for his part in the plot to defraud Barclays.

Mr Fan was given a further twelve months in prison for offences of possession of articles for use in fraud.

In December 2007, the two men plotted to use a fraudulent bank transfer payment to steal the £1.5 million, with Mr Fan diverting the stolen cash from Barclays into the client account of Mr Leather’s firm of solicitors.

Mr Fan was convicted in his absence, having disappeared after an earlier hearing. Police are currently still searching for him.

Detective inspector Perry Stoke praised the “quick thinking and outstanding work” of bank staff in stopping the fraud, adding: “This was a very well organised and sophisticated attack on a high street bank… The verdicts send out a clear message, fraud is not an easy option for organised gangs.”