Former Pakistan cricket captain Salman Butt, jailed in November for 30 months for spot-fixing in the UK, has been released from prison early.

Butt, 27, was released from Canterbury Prison in Kent on Wednesday night, his lawyers said.

He was jailed with bowlers Mohammad Asif, 29, and Mohammad Amir, 19, for the bowling of deliberate no balls in a 2010 Test match against England.

All three were also given five-year playing bans, which they are appealing.

Pakistan 'return'

Asif and Amir, also jailed after conviction last year at Southwark Crown Court, have already been released.

Mazhar Majeed, 36, the London-based sports agent behind the fixing scandal, was jailed for two years and eight months.

Knowing when specific events in cricket matches will happen, such as the deliberate bowling of no-balls as in this case, can be of great value in betting scams.

Butt is thought to have been deported back to Pakistan because he was freed under the early removal scheme.

This allows foreign nationals to be released up to nine months before their scheduled release date as long as they are then deported.

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