Mum's 'TikTok addiction' results in prison sentence for fraud

Daily Record

21 hours ago

Katherine Greenall "abused the trust" of the company she worked for with her actions.
A mum's "addiction to TikTok" has resulted in her being sent to prison after she stole almost half a million pounds from her employer.
Katherine Greenall, 29, was employed by technology company New Reg Ltd, which "specialises in purchasing vehicles for private and commercial clients", from 2021. A promotion in 2022 saw her become an accounts manager, which meant she had access to company bank accounts, Liverpool Crown Court heard on Friday, June 6.
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The mum-of-two from St Helens, Merseyside, went on to commit a "significant abuse of trust" in manipulating financial reports, allowing her to deposit vast sums into her own accounts over the course of more than a year.
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She spent most of it on TikTok tokens, which were gifted to content creators for her own "amusement and entertainment". She also splashed out on holidays, hotels and multiple personal purchases from Amazon, supermarkets and other retailers.
Appearing in the dock, she wiped her tears away as she was sentenced to 28 months behind bars, after admitting to fraud by abuse of position, the Liverpool ECHO reports.
Prosecutor Christopher Taylor described how Greenall had been praised for being a "vital part of the company's growth", "very organised and capable" and "both trusted and respected". However, her scheming saw her make a total of 53 unauthorised deposits to the tune of £57,036 in 2023, according to an analysis of her bank statements.
However, her actions would only worsen in early 2024. In January, she made four deposits totalling £8,917, then another 10 in February amounting to £14,916.
In March she made a shocking 20 payments worth £146,288, and incredibly, a further 31 in April, which added up to £196,264.26.
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Eventually, senior management at the company became suspicious after smaller than expected profits were raised with Greenall during a meeting with one of its directors on May 1. Despite promising to look into the issue, she returned to her desk and made a "final deposit" to her own account of £20,000 before leaving the office, claiming what was a "false family illness".
Greenall, called Katie by her colleagues, would later "admit her criminality" in another meeting on May 7, and was arrested on May 13. However, in her police interview, she was "emotional", claiming she "not been living a lavish lifestyle" and all she had in her bank account was £700.
She explained how the "deposits started small", and were "used to fund household purchases". It was later that she "started using the stolen money to fund TikTok payments", gifting tokens to creators.
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She described it as having "become an obsession" which came "at a time when she was low". She said she would send the coins to "random" accounts as it "made her feel better", but would "return to a number of particular creators".
In total, she siphoned £443,523.26 from the company over 121 separate transactions. £301,162.55 was spent on the tokens, leaving £142,360.71 which was "spent by the defendant on other things".
Her actions have reportedly "jeopardised the future" of the company, which has been in business since 1995, and put over 30 of her ex-colleagues at risk of redundancy due to the losses incurred.
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Paul Becker, defending, said that Greenall, who has no previous convictions, "may have been suffering from a form of addiction to TikTok", but stated that she had "no formal diagnosis to such an addiction".
It is believed her children, a six-year-old daughter and 11-year-old son, who has severe ADHD, will be cared for by her sister, a nursery worker, during her time in prison.
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Mr Becker added: "This is fraud on a massive scale. It started out for personal matters. It was not TikTok initially, but it is right to say that the bulk of the fraud went towards TiKTok.
"It started off otherwise, and it became TikTok. It was not for any sort of financial reward. It was amusement. The more she did it, the more she became addicted to being on TikTok. What she was getting out of it was entertainment. That is what she was paying for. That is where the majority of the money was going towards.
"Of course, that came from her employer who is massively out of pocket. It placed the business at risk and other members of staff in jeopardy. This was an abuse of trust on a massive scale. She is thoroughly ashamed of what she has done and has come today prepared for what might be said to be the inevitable.
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"She did not hold back with the police. She told them chapter and verse. It is not really rational thinking, to embark on this voyage of fraud and misadventure. What started out for her own personal benefit very quickly escalated into providing monies to TikTok.
" Bringing up children is not easy. This, I am sure, had an effect on her at the time of the offending. It is perhaps some sort of insight as to why somebody embarks upon this sort of fraud.
"It may be said that she was just greedy and wanted a better life and that is why she did it, but one has to have a holistic view of the factors in her life. It must have worn her down. It is not to negate what is deplorable behaviour, but she did not have an easy time. She is, if nothing else, a good mum who has done her best."
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Judge Neil Flewitt KC, sentencing Greenall, said: "You are 29 years of age and of previous good character. You are a good mum to two young children, one of whom has particular challenges. You were trusted and respected. Your employers were aware of the challenges that you faced at home and made allowed allowances.
"You repaid their trust in you by stealing from them on a massive scale. Over a period from January 2023 to the beginning of May 2024, you stole almost £450,000. You covered you what you were doing by manipulating documents that were used for accounting purposes by the company, and you put that money into your own bank account.
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"It started on a smaller scale. Things escalated on a grander scale in 2024. Having been made aware that the company was concerned, you did something which makes this worse. You went back to your desk and took another £20,000.
"As I understand it, it is possible to make payment through tokens to content creators on TikTok to show your appreciation to them for the entertainment that they provide. If the information I have been given is correct, part of that goes to the platform. I make no comment about the morality of all of that, but that seems to be where a substantial amount of this money has gone.
"But not all of it. From February 2024, there were 235 payments to TikTok totalling just over £300,000. That leaves over £142,000 that did not go to TikTok. You cannot possibly have needed all of that money just to buy day to day items. Some of it must have gone on extravagant spending.
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"I do accept that you must have been getting some form of escape from pressures at home by watching this content, that it may have been some sort of release for you. While there is no medical evidence that this became some form of addiction, I recognise that it became a pattern that was difficult to cast aside.
"You jeopardised the business and its future trading. More particularly, you put at risk the jobs of your fellow workers because, at one stage, it was thought that some of them might have to be made redundant. That is a serious aggravating feature.
"I accept that you are genuinely remorseful. You have found yourself work. I have read references from your mother, father, sister and friend and have read a lot about your two children.
"It is a matter of regret that I have a public duty which I have to fulfil. It is a tragedy that those children are going to suffer as a result of your dishonesty. I have taken the view that there is simply no way to avoid what I am sure you have been advised is the inevitable sentence of imprisonment. This is simply too much money and too much damage caused here."