JUSTICE officials in Kent have launched a blitz on "bail bandits" who fail to attend court.

Kent Police, the Crown Prosecution Service and the magistrates' courts are going after 200 people in the county who have failed to turn up for hearings.

Police will arrest bail jumpers and take them to court where they could be handed immediate jail sentences.

Elizabeth Howe, Kent's chief crown prosecutor, warned: "Turning up at court is not optional. You risk going to prison for failing to attend court. Don't wait for a police officer to come to your door, surrender to a police station now - it will be taken into account by the courts."

The Kent campaign is part of a national crackdown on bail bandits launched by the Attorney General Lord Goldsmith.

It aims to bring offenders to justice and reduce time wasted by victims, witnesses and the courts when cases do not go ahead because the defendant has not turned up to court.