AS A self-styled lord of the manor, property developer and entrepreneur, Steve Redhead had long been hitting the headlines on the Island before his conviction for people smuggling.

Today he was jailed for five years for conspiring to facilitate the commission of a breach of UK immigration law by a non EU person.

Co-defendants Jean Pierre Labelle and Christopher Barber were jailed for eight years and three years respectively.

So who is Lord Redhead?

He started developing with 18 industrial units, Redstone Business Centre, at Sandown’s Marsh Close, and moved into residential development.

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Over the years he had multiple clashes with the Isle of Wight Council's planning department, often donning costumes to raise awareness of his 'plight' in a series of publicity stunts.

Isle of Wight County Press: Raising awareness of a car parked for weeks opposite his then home.Raising awareness of a car parked for weeks opposite his then home.

He dressed as an ape on one occasion, to tell planners what he thought about their ‘bananas’ decisions.

Isle of Wight County Press: Steve Redhead with a disputed driveway in Shanklin.Steve Redhead with a disputed driveway in Shanklin.

In March 2015 he dressed as Barney Rubble and marched into the IW Council’s planning office to underline his claim officers were living in the Stone Age.

Isle of Wight County Press: Steve Redhead at the council planning officer, dressed as a Flintstone.Steve Redhead at the council planning officer, dressed as a Flintstone.

Redhead, then 40 and living at Hungerberry Close in Shanklin, told the County Press he had gone to appeal eight times and won every time.

This time he was fighting to knock down a house in Shanklin’s Landguard Manor Road and build two chalet bungalows and a block of three homes on the 32m wide plot.

He rose to prominence thanks to his attention-seeking antics when he bought a home in Whiteley Bank near Shanklin and turned it into a mansion.

In 2009 he unveiled a new addition to the property — a huge flag letting people know when he was in residence.

“I was inspired by Lord Arundel, who gave me a tour of his estate recently,” he said at the time.

“He had a flag with his coat of arms and it was absolutely amazing — I don’t get inspired very often but it was just fantastic. My flag is a thing of beauty.”

Isle of Wight County Press: Whitely Bank Lord Redhead with his new flag and pole, at his home

The flag was decorated with Lord Redhead’s coat of arms and a picture of his face, and flew from a 30ft flagpole outside his home.

It stood next to a statue of Rocky Balboa, again visible from the road, which featured Redhead’s face sculpted onto the body of the rags-to-riches boxer played by Sylvester Stallone.

Isle of Wight County Press: Steve Redhead with his statue of Rocky.

The developer, who bought his title, said Rocky’s rise to the top was a symbol of his own life.

Also in 2009 he was pictured helping friends, scaling a Godshill roof to add a fishing rod to an installation of a thatched kangaroo.

Clad in plus-fours and bright red tasselled socks, he said: “I used my Foreign Legion training and skills learned from Bear Grylls and clambered up to do the job.”

Isle of Wight County Press: Lord Redhead attaches a fishing rod to the kangaroo on the roof of Loaves and Fishes in Godshill in another publicity stunt.

At the Isle of Wight Crown Court today (Friday), Edward Hollinsworth, for Redhead, said he was not involved in an organisational role as regards the people smuggling, and there was no evidence he was involved in the loading or disembarking of people.

He said: “His character is wholly different to the level of criminality he’s become involved in. Others with foothold in that world have brought him in with it.”

He said there was a ‘degree of naivety’ in his thinking it was a ‘jolly over to France’.

He has now been sentenced to five years in jail.