A BUSINESSMAN who made almost £28,000 from illegally selling imported cigarettes has been ordered to hand over just £1,100.

In June Farhad Babaker was sentenced to do 100 unpaid work after being convicted of avoiding paying duty on 133,000 Russian cigarettes and 2.5kg of tobacco.

Babaker, aged 47, was caught after customs and excise officers kept watch on the Elite storage units at Spa Road, Bolton, in June last year.

The Kurdish businessman was seen loading boxes into his car, which were then taken to a mini market in Halliwell Road.

He was arrested outside a shop in Derby Street the following day.

He had £1,000 and five packets of cigarettes on him, with the bulk of his stock found when the storage unit was searched.

Babaker, of Royston Mains Crescent, Edinburgh, admitted evading the duty and a proceeds of crime hearing at Bolton Crown Court on Monday heard he had made £27,475.69 profit from his crime.

However, the prosecution said they accepted he only had £1,132.85 in available assets which they could seize.

Recorder Michael Blakey ruled that Babaker should hand over the cash within 28 days or face a month in jail.