THREE brothers have been sentenced to a total of 14 years after being found guilty of a ‘complex’ £3.2 million tax fraud.

The trio, Hedayat, Shahab and Shahin Hashtroudi, appeared at Southampton Crown Court earlier this morning.

Judge Peter Henry, sentencing him to six years, told Shahab Hashtroudi: "You were the power behind the throne, you ultimately were the orchestrator.”

His two brothers each received four years.

Here's what Alcatraz's Hashtroudi family have to say after brothers' £3.8m tax evasion...

Company bookkeeper Tracy Carder was handed a two year sentence, suspended for two years.

Earlier, the court heard how the complex tax fraud had been uncovered by the HMRC.

Shahab Hashtroudi, 64, of Carrbridge Close, Bournemouth, had been convicted of four charges of cheating the public revenue by failing to account for the PAYE and Value Added Tax between October 28, 2008, and June 29, 2016. The charges related to the Alcatraz Dining Group Limited, Alcatraz Pub Company Limited, Alcatraz Wine & Beer Company Limited, and other registered companies.

Careers of some 200 members of staff hang in the balance after £3.8m tax fraud case

Meanwhile, Hedayat Hashtroudi, 66, of Stirling Road, Bournemouth, was sentenced for one charge of cheating the public revenue, and youngest brother Shahin Hashtroudi, 56, of Dunkeld Road, Bournemouth, was also sentenced on the single charge of cheating the public revenue.

The Alcatraz Group employs around 200 staff, operating the Alcatraz Caffes at Horseshoe Common in Bournemouth, and High Street, Poole, as well as the Sir John Barleycorn pub at Cadnam, Hampshire.