3 days ago
Trusted employee stole £30k worth of stock - and splashed the cash on a cockapoo
A 'trusted employee' stole £30,000 of high quality bike parts - then spent the money he received for them on a cockapoo.
Jordan Banks, 35, was offered £2,000 to steal boxes of parts from Cycle Sport North in Preston, where he worked in the warehouse, LancsLive reported.
Ellie McManus, prosecuting, told Preston Crown Court the thefts came to light when an audit manager carried out a regular stock check on September 27, 2022.
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He noticed two boxes of e-bike batteries were missing and checked the company's CCTV. Eight boxes had been delivered on September 14 and had been booked in by Banks.
However, only six had been placed into the secure cage, where high value parts were stored. Other boxes had been left in the 'goods in' area overnight, the court was told.
At 7.30 the following morning, Banks was seen taking items from the area and making a small wall around his car, obscuring the view of the CCTV cameras. He took a pallet of boxes to the car and placed one box in the boot and another on the floor of the vehicle.
He left work that evening but did not return with any of the stock, Ms McManus said. The total value of goods stolen on that occasion was £10,517.14.
Further CCTV enquiries revealed the defendant had carried out similar thefts on two further occasions in September 2022. The manager said over £100,000 of stock had gone missing in the past 12 months.
The police were called and Banks was arrested at his home in Penwortham. He and his vehicle were searched but nothing untoward was found. He later pleaded guilty to theft by employee to a total of £30,000 of stock.
In a business impact statement, Cycle Sports North said Banks was a long standing employee who had never given any cause for concern. He was trusted to work alone and without supervision, given his experience on the goods in team.
"He acted dishonestly and deceived them through his behaviour", Ms McManus said. "He deviously engaged in deception and had become so practised he was brazen enough to place £6,000 of goods in his car in broad daylight, with his colleagues passing by.
"His long term behaviour sought to defraud the business for personal gain without thought for the business, his colleagues' job security or customer orders."
She said the stock that was stolen left the company unable to fulfil £150,000 of orders which had an impact on the company's turnover and put jobs at risk.
It caused ill sentiment and distrust towards the company as customers were left without the bikes they had ordered.
Naomi Duckworth, defending, said Banks had been struggling with his finances when he was approached and offered money to take the stock.
"He made a stupid, misguided mistake which cost him his family", she added. "With the £2,000 he received, he purchased a cockapoo for his son."
However he has since separated from his wife, Ms Duckworth said.
Recorder Ayesha Siddiqi, sentencing, said: "What is very clear is that your actions had a significant impact on the business and had a significant impact on your colleagues and their job security.
"You breached a high degree of trust and responsibility as an employee. Your employer trusted you and you had autonomy in your role.
"You were trusted to work without supervision or instruction, and there was some degree of planning - this was not spontaneous on your part.
"You were in financial difficulty. Quite simply, this was never the answer - you don't need me to tell you that. You destroyed your life over what you say is £2,000."
She jailed Banks, of Aspinall Close, Penwortham, for 22 months.
