Fake DNA test man could be jailed

Mr Mullane was released on unconditional bail

An internet businessman could be jailed for faking the results to paternity tests he was hired to carry out.

Simon Mullane, 39, never carried out the tests on samples sent to his Dorset-based firm, High Profile, he admitted to magistrates in Bournemouth.

He pleaded guilty on Wednesday to 16 specimen counts of theft carried out between May and August 2002.

The former head of the Poole firm charged clients £600 each, claiming he was sending DNA samples to Canada.

Mr Mullane, who now lives in Granada, Spain, was told the prosecution would not proceed with a further 19 charges of forgery and 19 counts of using a false instrument.

The case was adjourned for reports but the defendant, a former deputy chairman of Poole Conservative Club, was warned that all sentencing options, including a jail term, remained open.

He was released on unconditional bail and will be sentenced at the same court on 31 August.