A MAN who made a fortune by helping people to cheat to pass their driving theory test was jailed for two years yesterday.
Michael Babayan, 49, set up a scam in which candidates were given a hands-free mobile phone to wear under a headscarf for the computerised theory section of the test.
Each person then requested a “voice-over” service, which is provided for candidates who cannot read English. When they switched on the phone they had a live link to Babayan who listened to the questions and provided the answer down the phone.
Babayan, who was unemployed, pleaded guilty at Wood Green Crown Court, North London, to nine counts of obtaining or attempting to obtain property by deception. Six other defendants involved in the scam pleaded guilty to obtaining property by deception, but were not sent to prison.
Police believe that Babayan, of Acton, West London, could have helped as many as 400 people to pass their theory test illegally and made £200,000 in the process.
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Suspicion arose in July 2002, when staff at Palmers Green Test Centre in North London saw an increasing number of people taking tests while wearing headscarves.
Four separate candidates were spotted in July last year with wire running from their ears to inside their collars. Eight days later, similar wire leads were spotted on three other men, police said.
Enfield police mounted a surveillance operation using radio specialists from the Department of Trade and Industry. The scam was traced to a property in Palmers Green, where test candidates were seen coming and going in different headwear.
A raid in November last year yielded numerous mobile phones, hands-free sets, a box of scarves and strips of sticking plasters, police said.