Sentences for theft and handling stolen goods cases connected to last month's riots were higher than average, it has emerged.
The average sentence handed down by judges in all courts for those offences was 13.6 months, compared to 11.6 months for all of 2010.
Earlier reports by The Guardian had claimed that the riot-related sentence were more than three times as high as the average.
However, the Ministry of Justice told The Huffington Post UK that the paper had compared sentences from crown courts to those from all courts in 2010.
The Guardian said that the average sentence for those offences was 4.1 months, more than three times the overall average. The MoJ pointed out the overall average was actually 11.6 months.
Since crown court cases are typically more serious, the difference appeared larger than it was in reality.
"It's still higher, but not three times higher," a spokesman for the Ministry of Justice told The Huffington Post UK.
The Guardian has since amended its story.
The paper said in its correction: "This represents a sentence 18% longer for rioters than typical crown court convictions, though this difference does not reflect the larger proportion of rioters sent to crown court nor the substantially higher custody rate for rioters."
Despite the discrepancy the statistics suggest that judges made an effort to hand out more severe sentences that usual.
The Guardian data analysis of 1,100 riot-related offences showed that more than 90 per cent of crown court cases ended in jail terms.
The three most severe sentences in the caes heard so far, two of four years and one of 33 months, were handed down to defendants who attempted to incite riots on Facebook.
The shortest prison sentence was issued to Steven Frear, who will serve six weeks for possession of an offensive weapon.
The MoJ said that the sentences were decided by judges, not ministers.
"Magistrates and judges are independent of Government," the MoJ said in a statement. "Their sentencing decisions are based on the individual circumstances of each case and offender. That is why different offenders may be given different sentences for what might appear to be similar crimes.
"To provide a consistent base for these decisions an independent body of experts,the Sentencing Council, set guidelines for them to use. These provide a range of sentences that could be given for particular types of crime, including cases of theft,burglary or robbery."
The Ministry of Justice will release more detailed stats on the offences related to rioting on Tuesday afternoon.