A family given the wrong ashes said they were "pleased justice had been done" after undertaker Roger Barker was found guilty of deceiving them.

Paul and Sheila Kent, of Grove, spoke after Barker, 57, of R & H Barker funeral directors, was found guilty of obtaining almost £1,700 -- the money they paid for their son Lee's funeral -- by deception at Oxford Crown Court yesterday.

Mr and Mrs Kent said they were "devastated" when they realised that the ashes they scattered on November 9, 2003, were not those of son Lee, who was 27 when he was killed in a motorcycle accident.

Mr Kent said he just did not understand why Barker had done it and he hoped his business would close.

He added: "Barker did wrong and now he's going to pay for it."

When asked if they would now be able to achieve closure, Mrs Kent said: "We will never know where our son's ashes are."

Judge Bruce McIntyre told Barker he could not rule out a custodial sentence after Barker was found guilty of deception. He was also found guilty of forging the signature of Bryan Harrow, on documents to authorise his wife Elizabeth's cremation, but was found not guilty of falsifying the signature of Thomas Lacy for the cremation of Reginald Lacy.

During the trial the court heard from former employees who testified that there was a bucket of ashes in a shed Barker called "Granny Smith", which were leftover as they would not fit into urns given to relatives. But Barker denied that clients were given these leftovers when the correct ashes had not been picked up from Oxford Crematorium.

Defence witnesses testified that Barker was "caring", and he was put forward for an MBE for his services, an award which he has not been given.

Barker was given unconditional bail and will be sentenced on April 1.

Barker's offices, in Wantage Road, Didcot, and Harcourt Road, Wantage, continue to run.