A fantasist police officer who brought "shame on the uniform" after spinning a web of lies has been jailed.

Judge Simon James told Michael Tovell his imprisonment will "complete his fall from grace" after the 46-year-old was recently fired from the force.

The ex-Thanet PC was convicted of perverting the course of justice after inexplicably lying about a gang attacking him in a graveyard.

It triggered a huge police manhunt for the phantom attackers costing a significant amount of public money.

"Your selfish acts have brought shame on the uniform and have only provided ammunition to those who seek to denigrate the hard work and dedication of police officers," said judge James.

"You have been convicted after trial, following the jury concluding that your oath was a self-serving lie.

"The consequences to you have already been profound.

"You have lost your career, you livelihood, most likely your pension, and certainly the respect of your colleagues.

"It is clear to me, from your presentation, that you are a broken man."

The court heard Tovell, who wept throughout the hearing, claimed four men wielding baseball bats and a handgun beat him over the head and body while on duty.

He sent an SOS call on his police radio and activated his tazer, bringing all local police officers to St Laurence Church in Ramsgate last year.

He feigned having a fit in an ambulance, and claimed he was beaten by four black men with two baseball bats at gunpoint.

But doctors found his injuries were inconsistent with his account.

Judge James went on: "When officers came to your aid, they described you as disorientated and breathless.

"At one stage you apparently stopped breathing and officers thought they would have to administer CPR.

"In the ambulance you seemed to have some sort of fit, where your eyes rolled back into your head, but you recovered almost as suddenly as you seemed to collapse."

Tovell sobbed in the dock as the judge described the "wild goose chase" he had initiated, adding "your conduct has brought the entire force into disrepute."

"Your selfish acts have brought shame on the uniform and have only provided ammunition to those who seek to denigrate the hard work and dedication of police officers" - Judge Simon James

Prosecutor Walton Hornsby said Tovell's motives were unclear and suggested he could have been "seeking attention."

Police plied £14,000 into officers' expenses while investigating the fake attack, he explained.

The total cost of the investigation is believed to be much higher.

Mitigating, Kevin Baumber played down the offence claiming it was an "aggravated" form of wasting police time.

A psychiatric report suggested Tovell could have been mentally unfit and vulnerable.

Mr Baumber explained Tovell presented symptoms consistent with an emotional disorder, he added.

In a previous hearing Tovell told the jury he happened on the thugs while searching for a missing person alone at 9.45pm in 2018.

They smashed him over the head with metal and wooden baseball bats after brandishing a handgun then fled, he claimed.

"When I was on my knees watching ahead towards the wall I saw them head towards wall," he told the court.

But Tovell's account didn’t tie up with his injuries.

The former constable was rushed to Ashford’s William Harvey Hospital and discharged hours later.

A CT scan and other tests revealed there were no serious injuries.

Tovell told the jury detective Steve Biddiss was ordered to photograph his injuries the next day after his head and hands "ballooned" with swelling.

However, police maintained it had no record or recollection of taking the snaps.

The jury found Tovell guilty of perverting the course of justice after deliberating for just over an hour.

He was jailed for 15 months.

Tovell was fired earlier this month for gross misconduct prompting a public statement from Kent Police’s Professional Standards Department.

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