A bogus doctor – who is doing time after illegally working at Ashford’s William Harvey Hospital – has now lost his watch inside prison!

Levon Mkhitarian scammed more than £83,000 from health authorities after stealing the identity of a real Thanet GP.

He was jailed at Canterbury Crown Court for six years – sparking a financial investigation under the Proceeds of Crime Act.

But despite all his earnings and having two bank accounts, two mobile phones, an iPad and two ‘very old’ laptop computers and a watch..his assets have been assessed at just £1627.28.

The fraudster’s barrister Simon Ray told the court: “The watch is somewhere within the prison system and as of February 6 he was told his property has been lost. He was told to file for compensation.”

Now Judge Adele Williams has ordered an investigation into how the property had disappeared.

“I want to know what has happened to the defendant’s property and efforts should be re-doubled to locate it.”

After ruling the fake doc had received £83,068.90 as a result of his deceit she ordered money raised by the sale of property to be confiscated and then handed over to the health authorities.

Judge Williams told Mkhitarian – who sat in the dock for the five minute hearing – that he had three months to pay the money or face a further four months added to his sentence.

Mkhitarian- who pleaded guilty to 22 offences of deception, fraud and visa offences - had treated more than 3,300 patients after taking the Thanet GP’s identity to land jobs caring for seriously ill people – even though he had been struck off.

Those included patients on cancer, transplant, general surgery, cardio and elderly wards – as well being on call in the A&E department.

At the sentencing hearing in July last year, Judge Williams was told that the deceit has had a “detrimental effect on the NHS” and patients who believed they were being treated by a qualified doctor.

The 36-year-old – born in Russia but travelling on a US passport – had come to the UK in August 2007 after being sponsored by Dynamic Futures, an international recruitment company.

The NHS later revealed that in addition to his wages the cost of checking its records to ensure patients weren’t misdiagnosed had reached £69,000.