A man accused of marrying 107 Scots women to Africans for £500 a head has been jailed for two years.

Lamin Manneh, dubbed "the wedding planner", brought men to Paisley were he paid women to marry them in a bid to secure UK citizenship.

But the 36-year-old was caught out after using his own name and address at local registry offices.

As revealed in later edition's of yesterday's Evening Times, Paisley Sheriff Court was told Manneh was just a chauffeur to the men and paid for travel and accommodation out of the £500 he received per marriage.

His conviction was part of a UK-wide investigation into sham marriages by the UK Border Agency.

The agency said it had evidence of 107 sham marriages but charges were brought over 13 and Manneh later pleaded guilty to arranging nine.

Phil Taylor, Regional Director of UK Border Agency in Scotland said Manneh, of Woodley, Reading, now faced deportation.

Duncan Macniven, the Registrar General for Scotland, added: "Abuse of Scotland's marriage laws is unacceptable.

"We hope this will send a clear signal that sham marriages have no place in Scottish society."

The court was told Paisley had been identified as the "best place" to find women "primed" to be paid between £1000 and £2000 to marry.

If the fake unions went undetected for two years the men would have gained the right to apply for more permanent status in the UK.

Defence agent Jonathan Manson said dad-of-three Manneh came from an impoverished village in Gambia.

He said: "All he was doing was supporting his family. He has led a blameless life."

Manneh pleaded guilty on April 8 to arranging five marriages in Paisley, two in Renfrew and two in Glasgow's Park Circus Registry Office, all between April 2006 and February 2007.

Depute fiscal Douglas Hamilton told the court it was not clear why Paisley had been chosen.

He said: "The men and women in the Paisley area were more readily willing to do this than perhaps brighter and more honourable souls south of the Border."

Manneh was sentenced to 24 months.