Derbyshire ‘medal factory’ fraudster ordered to repay £50,000

Investigators estimated that Lyttel’s business made more than £72,000 from the fake medals and £10,000 from the poppy badges, with no contribution to the charity.

The counterfeit medals included fake Distinguished Flying Crosses and Air Force Crosses.

Lyttel admitted fraudulent trading and trademark infringement when he was prosecuted at the same court by Derbyshire County Council’s Trading Standards team in June 2020.

He received a two-year sentence, suspended for 18 months, was ordered to carry out 100 hours of unpaid work and disqualified from acting as a director of a company for five years.

A confiscation order was made to get the money back but at the time Lyttel was only able to repay £2,000, the council said.

However, the authority said further investigations, in June this year, found he had more than £50,000 available so it applied for the order to be revised.

Under the new order, Lyttel will have to pay £10,000 to the RBL to compensate the charity for lost income as a result of his fake poppy badge sales.

The court said Lyttel was told he faces a 12-month jail term if he does not pay £50,488 within three months.