Former Devizes Taxis director David Ascough may have to wait until the end of March next year before he knows what financial penalty he will have to pay.

Ascough, 65, from Coate, near Devizes, was convicted in September of 14 out of 19 counts of theft, fraud and forgery at Winchester Crown Court.

The charges date from when he was a director of the taxi firm between 2006 and 2008.

He was sentenced on September 29 to six months’ imprisonment, suspended for 18 months, ordered to carry out 250 hours of unpaid work in the community and banned from being a company director for eight years.

But the imposition of any financial penalty was adjourned until the Crown Prosecution Service decided whether to apply for confiscation of his assets under the Proceeds of Crime Act.

Judge Guy Boney QC was told on Friday that it would most likely not be until January 20 that any application for confiscation would be submitted, and not until March 23 that a court hearing will decide whether or not to uphold the application.

Judge Boney has already indicated he is considering imposing the full amount of prosecution costs of £6,320 against Mr Ascough.

But he told prosecuting barrister David Tucker: “This gentleman is entitled to know his financial fate and the gap between September and March is too long.”

Mr Tucker said he would ask the investigation team to hurry their research along.