A pharmacist committed forgery and VAT fraud totalling more than £200,000.

Conrad Chau altered prescriptions to get pharmaceutical firms to send him drugs at a discounted price so he could sell them on for a profit.

The 51-year-old also changed addresses on invoices to VAT would be zero-rated and failed to pass on the proper documents to his accountant.

Chau owned the Holburn Pharmacy in Aberdeen but is no longer involved with the business.

He was caught out when it emerged he had been submitting fake prescriptions to two drug companies between February and June 2013.

Chau admitted a string of fraud charges when he appeared in court charged with the offences last month and was sentenced at Aberdeen Sheriff Court on Friday.

Fiscal depute Kelly Mitchell previously told the court: "The accused pretended to these companies that he had dispensed his monthly quota to genuine patients and thereafter sent over quota orders, these were sent by fax and e-mail and contained fraudulently altered prescriptions for products that had never been prescribed by relevant doctors."

The fraud was discovered when a comparison was made between the genuine prescriptions issued by local GPs and the forged versions of the same documents.

Chau's solicitor, George Mathers, said his client has sold the pharmacy and was working as a locum elsewhere.

He said his client had not initially realised the seriousness of the offence and someone had been given him bad advice.

Mr Mathers said the Holburn Pharmacy, which Chau bought in 1995, was performing well until he made bad business decisions.

The solicitor said his client had been loyal to his staff and had not wanted anyone to lose their jobs.

The court heard Chau intended to pay back the cash he had fraudulently taken.

Sheriff William Summers described it as a "loss to the public purse" and jailed the pharmacist for 20 months.

Gordon Young, head of counter fraud services at NHS Scotland, said: "Conrad Chau's actions could have delayed the provision of medicines to patients in need, due to the control measures in place.

"Engaging in criminality to wholesale medicines erodes the trust between community pharmacists, GPs, pharmaceutical companies, patients and NHS Scotland.

"We will continue to work in partnership with all health boards and law enforcement partners in Scotland to prevent, deter and detect fraud and will pursue fraudsters whenever they are identified."