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An Israeli convicted of arranging US kidney transplants for profit has been given a two-and-a-half-year sentence, BBC reported.

Levy Izhak Rosenbaum admitted brokering kidney transplants for profit, becoming the first person convicted over illegal organ sales in the US, prosecutors say.

He was alleged to have charged between $120,000 (£77,400) and $160,000 to arrange kidneys for three people.

He was caught trying to arrange fourth operation when the FBI launched a sting operation in 2009.

New Jersey prosecutors said Rosenbaum, an Israeli living in Brooklyn, used newspaper adverts in his homeland to find donors willing to give up a kidney in return for cash.

He was alleged to have paid as little as $10,000 to secure a donor organ.

He then helped set up blood test and services to ensure a proper match was arranged for those in need of a transplant in the US.

Although at least one recipient of a kidney spoke up in defence during Rosenbaum's sentencing hearing, one other said they had felt exploited.

"It was wrong, but I thought the cause was good," Rosenbaum, 61, told the court.

"I can assure this court I will never do this again."