A John Lewis sales assistant, who spent nearly £1000 of entertainer Des O�Connor�s cash during a £169,000 credit-card con, has been jailed for 18 months.

A John Lewis sales assistant, who spent nearly £1000 of entertainer Des O'Connor's cash during a £169,000 credit-card con, has been jailed for 18 months.

Olanrewaju Apalara, 26, used his mobile phone to secretly record card details of the star and scores of other customers he served in the Oxford Street store's sports and gardening department.

Later, the computer analyst went online, registered the cards - 183 in total - under false names and ordered a treasure trove of electronic goods and other items.

London's Southwark Crown Court heard yesterday that they were delivered to friends and family, then he sold them on eBay.

He used a large slice of the money to clear thousands of pounds in student debts run up while studying for a BSc in information technology and an MA in computing and internet systems.

But as time passed and the scam proved easier he became "arrogant" and started using the account name "Killer Fraud" to place orders.

Ben Douglas-Jones, prosecuting, said that if the nine-month crime spree had not been halted, Apalara could have netted £300,000.

Nigerian-born Apalara, from Essex, who more recently worked as a data analyst and developer, admitted obtaining property by deception and converting the proceeds of criminal property between March to December, 2005.

Passing sentence, Judge Anthony Pitts said: "It is sad to see someone of your intelligence and ability in front of the court on serious charges of dishonesty."

However, his greed and "arrogance", as portrayed in the account name he used, had betrayed his potential.

His need to clear his debts were no excuse for "the flagrant abuse of trust" committed during "this determined and serious fraud".

Immediate prison, the judge added, was inevitable.