A LAWYER who was jailed for laundering almost £1.5 million of dirty money through a law firm is planning to appeal his conviction, a court has heard. 

An advocate acting for David Lyons, 71, told judge Lord Braid today about how the disgraced solicitor believes he was wrongly convicted of money laundering offences. 

Lyons, of Kilmacolm, was given a seven year term in January for being part of a gang of five who used Paisley based law firm Robertson & Ross to launder cash. 

The High Court in Glasgow heard how the money was funnelled through the client account of the firm to try and make it look legitimate.

Lyons acted alongside fellow solicitors Iain Robertson, 69, also of Kilmacolm, and Alastair Blackwood in the scam. 

Mohammed Aziz, 61, and Robert Ferguson, 67, also took part in the crimes. 

Now prosecutors have launched a bid to try to recover the money made by the men by using proceeds of crime legislation. 

On Monday, during a procedural hearing at the High Court in Edinburgh, Lyons’ advocate Gail Gianni told Lord Braid that her client - who lived in upmarket Kilmacolm - believes he has fallen victim to a miscarriage of justice. 

She said: “Mr Lyons has lodged an intention to appeal against his conviction and sentence. That’s at an early stage.”

The five men were sentenced following a nine-week trial before judge Lord Richardson. 

The trial was the culmination of a process which had been triggered by a Law Society probe into activities at the firm. 

They were convicted of fraud and multiple charges under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002.

Robertson, Lyons and Aziz were also convicted on charges of being involved in serious organised crime.

Robertson was jailed for eight years while Blackwood, of Dunlop, East Ayrshire, was given a seven year stretch. 

Aziz, of Partick, Glasgow, was also jailed for seven years, whilst Ferguson, 67, of Thornliebank, near Glasgow, was jailed for 16 months.

Prosecutors told jurors the case centred on four transactions carried out between May 2015 and July 2016.

The first transaction involved a £79,340 stolen cheque due to be paid to a law firm in Jersey.

The next centred on £240,000 from a fraudulent house sale in London.

The third transaction saw £985,000 stolen from the hacked bank account of an individual.

And the final illegal activity was uncovered after Robertson claimed to be acting for a man who wanted to sell his home in Essex.

The court heard that the "seller" was said to be staying at a flat that turned out to be Ferguson's address.

A total of £181,786 was made from the fraudulent sale.

In each transaction, the proceeds were funnelled through the client bank account held by Robertson's firm in Paisley, Robertson & Ross.

Limited, and false records were created to make them appear legitimate.

Fake papers and fake IDs - including a passport and driver's licence - were collated in a bid to cover up the crimes.

The Law Society raised concerns about several of these transactions before alerting police to the potential illegal activity.

The trial heard that lawyer Robertson, who has been suspended by the Law Society along with Blackwood, was at the heart of the money-laundering scheme, since he had access to his firm's client account.

On Monday, Lord Braid continued the case to another hearing, which will take place at the High Court in Edinburgh on June 5.