Three members of a card-cloning gang who travelled the world with cash plundered from Burberry customers' bank accounts were jailed for a total of six years on

Monday (01).

The fraudsters may have pocketed up to £600,000 using details stolen from the designer outlet in London's Piccadilly, two hotels and a service station.

The 19-month scam was foiled by British Transport Police when three of the conmen were stopped at Waterloo International station with a 'cloning factory' in their luggage.

Brothers Hudaifa, Talal and Marwan Tawfiq, of Westfield Road in Acton, together with Ahmed Charmaga, of Seacole Close in Acton and Ali Hamid, admitted involvement in the scam.

Prosecutor David Allan, told Southwark Crown Court: "This involves the cloning of credit card details, the production of cloned credit cards and use of those credit cards particularly abroad, for the benefit of the criminals involved."

Talal Tawfiq, 28, copied guests' cards while working at the Holiday Inn in Ealing between December 2006 and May last year.

Several Burberry shoppers' card details were also stored on his computer, supplied by an associate who had worked there.

More details were supplied by a worker at a Welcome Break service station near Oxford, and Snack 24 service station in Leigh-on-Sea, Essex.

Gang members had travelled around the Middle East, including to Egypt, Jordan and Morocco, and around Europe.

Hudaifa Tawfiq, 23, had a picture of himself on his mobile phone 'triumphantly' waving a wedge of Euros in the Czech capital Prague.

Before one trip abroad Charmaga, 24, received a good luck text message telling him: "Have a good trip - don't get nabbed."

Hudaifa Tawfiq, Hamid, 25, and Charmaga were stopped before they could get on the Eurostar to Brussels on January 23 last year.

Their baggage contained a laptop, around 150 cloned cards, and 300 blank cards ready for loading up with new data, and a skimming device.

Five months later Marwan Tawfiq and Talal were also snared.

Passing sentence, Judge Michael Gledhill QC said: "Each has sought to minimise their own roles in the collusion but in my view each has played a significant part.'

Judge Gledhill sentenced Marwan Tawfiq to two and a half years, Ahmed Charmaga to two years and Tala Tawfiq to eighteen months behind bars.

Hamid was sentenced to 12 months suspended for two years, and he was ordered to carry out 150 hours of unpaid work.

The judge adjourned Hudaifa's sentencing to January 16 after hearing he has a similar previous conviction.

Detective Sergeant Phil Michelsen, attached to the BTP, said the 'cash-rich' plotters booked into plush hotels to blow their profits and said an estimated 600 cards were 'compromised', with the potential to earn up to £1,000 each.

The Tawfiq brothers and Charmaga admitted conspiracy to defraud and Hamid, of north west London, admitted possessing an article for use in fraud.