Police are hunting the brains behind a global bank card cloning scam that landed two Bradford brothers with jail sentences.

Volodymir Kozlenko, on the run after jumping police bail, recruited “pawns” to enrich himself, a Court was told.

He is wanted on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud after he was caught with a memory stick detailing how to clone cards and a list of shop locations.

Kozlenko disappeared following his arrest in the Shipley area on June 17, 2008, Bradford Crown Court heard yesterday.

In the dock were brothers Zaheer Qureshi, 26, of Aireville Grove, Shipley, and Haroon Abbas, 28, of Lonsdale Street, Bradford Moor. Both pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud between September 2007 and July 2009.

Qureshi, who ripped off his own father to boost his champagne and cocaine lifestyle, was jailed for two years.

Abbas, who drove his brother and Kozlenko once, was sentenced to six months’ imprisonment suspended for 12 months with 80 hours’ unpaid work.

Prosecutor Nikki Peers said the three men were part of a fraud involving stolen and cloned bank cards.

Qureshi was arrested and bailed four times as he continued to target hotels, Argos stores and on-line betting sites racking up debts of £36,723.

In September 2007, he was arrested at the Ramada Jarvis Bankfield Hotel, Bingley, after using a cloned card to run up a £753 bill, including Champagne.

He notched up bills at other hotels, including the Hilton and the Holiday Inn Express in Bradford, and the Marriott Hollins Hall Hotel, Baildon. He was on bail again when all three were arrested on June 17, 2008 after Qureshi tried to fraudulently buy electrical goods at Argos in Bank Street, Shipley.

Qureshi went on to steal his father’s credit card and run up a £10,530 bill for on-line gambling, and hotel bills.

On July 10 last year, his crime spree ended when he tried to buy a laptop computer with a fake card. Police found two counterfeit American Express cards hidden in his trousers.

Miss Peers said the fraud included American Express cards cloned from genuine cards owned by a Russian and a man in Illinois, US.

Qureshi’s barrister, Abdul Iqbal, said his client had been out of control and drinking a litre of vodka a day. He led the high life, fuelled by his addiction to cocaine.

Mr Iqbal said Kozlenko used Qureshi as “a pawn” to enrich himself while staying in the background and evading justice. Qureshi lived “the life of Riley The judge, Recorder David Kelly, told Qureshi: “I don’t suggest you were the brains, but you were a willing participant in a professionally planned operation.”