A gang of credit card tricksters met their match in Monks Cross shopping Centre when they travelled from London and Manchester to target Yorkshire cities.

The three men had already "hit" hi-tech stores and a superstore in three different Hull shopping areas when they arrived in York, Simon Kealey, prosecuting, said.

In the boot of their car were a lap-top computer, electrical items, tobacco and alcohol bought with cloned credit cards.

But their attempts to repeat their Humberside success were foiled by Dixons area manager Richard Carter and staff at PC World who alerted detectives.

Police stopped the trio as they drove south on the A1.

Today Ali Usman, 29, of Cemetery View, Bolton, Manchester is starting 15 months in jail and accomplice Colin Joseph Esimaje, 31, of Horton House, Lovelinch Close, London, 12 months.

Their driver, would-be accountant Leslie Oritsegbubemi Okomi, 29, of Osbaleston Road, Stamford Hill, London, must do 240 hours' community service.

Okomi and Esimaje admitted conspiracy to obtain property by deception. Usman admitted two charges of deception and two of attempted deception. He has a previous conviction for credit card fraud and Esimaje has one for deceiving a bank.

"You three men made a special trip from London to these parts for the purpose of fraud, and in my judgement, you were all in it together," Judge Paul Hoffman told them at York Crown Court.

Mr Kealey said on March 7, 2000, the three were repeatedly caught on CCTV, buying items with three cloned credit cards, which are cards that duplicate real cards.

When they arrived at Monks Cross, Mr Carter heard one trickster say to another in the car park: "You hit PC World, I'll hit Dixons."

The area manager alerted his staff who took a cloned card from Usman as he tried to buy a laptop computer. In PC World, staff took a card from Okomi and Esimaje as they tried to do the same.

For Okomi, Graham Smith said he had agreed to drive Esimaje to Yorkshire from London for £300. Once in the north he had got drawn into the credit card crimes.

For Usman, Rani Kaur said he had not led any of the others into crime.

For Esimaje, Chris Tehrani said he had been heavily in debt and under stress because of family illness and his cannabis and cocaine use.

Updated: 09:47 Tuesday, February 27, 2001