A 73-year-old woman stole £801,000 from her wine company employer over 12 years after being entrusted by her bosses to clear up an almost identical crime.
Patricia Mann joined Derby Road-based Vintage Wines Ltd in 2004 after she was recommended by the victim’s previous accountant.
The company had previously been defrauded so already had payment issues. Mann was well thought off in the world of accountancy and therefore was recruited to clear up the crime.
All was going well in her new role as the business’ bookkeeper until Mann stated that the company was hitting cash flow problems during 2016.
During 2018 the victim’s bank stated that the company had a substantial deficit in cash flow.
It was found that Mann had been paying herself directly unauthorised amounts of money from the business account into her own bank.
Mann admitted she had been taking money from the company for approximately two years which totalled around £50,000.
She offered to pay the money back to the victim as she was selling a house.
Enquiries continued into the amount of money which Mann had taken.
An investigation showed the actual total was in the region of £801,000.
The owner of the business even had to sell his own personal property and cash in his pension due to the fear of the business going bankrupt.
Mann, of Pilot Drive, Hucknall, pleaded guilty to fraud by abuse of position and was jailed for three years and nine months at Nottingham Crown Court on Thursday (28 January 2021).
Victim Terry Rockley, managing director and owner of Vintage Wines Ltd, said: “Patricia Mann did not just copy a terrible crime, she had been entrusted to sort out, but it escalated it to an astonishing level with no regard for myself, the company or the staff who trusted her.
“She ended up funding family members and benefitted greatly from the proceeds of crime.
“Hopefully now, at long last, after more than two years of investigation work and this sentence, some justice can be delivered.”
Detective Constable Chris Underwood who led the investigation said: “When Mann was hired she seemed the ideal replacement. She fitted in well with the company and her attitude towards running the company was described as ‘second to none’.
“She had full control of the company finances, including wages, banking and cash flow forecasts.
“In 2016 the company started to show a downturn in cash flow. Mann told the victim that she had no idea why this happened and agreed that the company might well shut. This would have clearly been ideal for Mann as it would have covered her tracks.
“The victim employed new accountants to identify any issues. It was found that she was paying herself directly unauthorised amounts of money from the business account into her own bank account.
“Mann stole directly from the company who had held her in high esteem and she knew she was wrong in doing this.
“Greed just took over her. Her actions caused a huge amount of stress to not only the victim but that of other employees as they feared for losing their jobs and livelihood.
“Nottinghamshire Police takes fraud and financial abuse seriously and is committed to investigating reports of this kind. We recognise the wide reaching effects this type of crime has on the victim and the wider community.”
