A jailed criminal who kept his council property while he was locked up has been evicted from his home.

Marchel Ngum, of Wellsbourne in Findon Road, Brighton, was jailed for 13 months for robbery and weapons offences last year.

However he was allowed to keep his tenancy on the property which belongs to Brighton and Hove City Council as he nominated someone to live there while he was serving his jail sentence.

Mr Ngum has since been released from prison and went back to living in his home.

But this week the local authority has secured a county court order evicting him from the property.

The Argus understands it was due to a taser being found at his home.

The order secured on Monday gives him five weeks to leave the property. If he fails then bailiffs will be summoned.

A council spokesman said: “Mr Ngum was on an introductory tenancy agreement and the possession order was sought because the terms of that agreement were breached through criminal activity.”

Mr Ngum, who had previously been convicted of planning to deal heroin and crack cocaine in the city, was arrested in October 2010 just months after moving into the council property.

At the time the local authority said it had a duty to house him as he was deemed homeless in accordance with the 1996 Housing Act.

The 29-year-old was jailed for 13 months at Hove Crown Court in May 2011 for robbery and weapons offences.

At the time, a council spokesman said the council usually sought possession of a property if a conviction was linked to a council property or where a convicted tenant is without dependents.

However he added the council was limited by law to act where vulnerable members of the tenant’s household were involved.

Hove MP Mike Weatherley said he could understand why the law would protect vulnerable partners and children of criminals but felt that did not apply in this case.

He said: “In these circumstances it is similar to a resident having left the area so when he comes out of prison he should go back on the housing list like everybody else.”

A Sussex Police spokeswoman said there was no record of Mr Ngum being arrested in the last year.