A former office accounts manager who embezzled almost £30,000 from the scaffolding firm she worked for is being pursued through the civil courts for the missing cash.
Karen Cromar, 40, was spared a jail sentence by Sheriff Elizabeth Munro in December, however she was ordered to do 150 hours of unpaid work as part of a three-year, supervised community payback order.
Cromar, of St Martin Avenue, Dundee, was also ordered to pay £5,000 compensation to IAS Dundee Ltd, which Sheriff Elizabeth Munro said “doesn’t touch what you embezzled but at least it’s a gesture”.
Cromar had previously admitted that, between July 13 2011 and July 23 2012, at IAS Dundee Ltd, Tom Johnstone Road, and Lloyds TSB, Meadowside, while employed as office/accounts manager, she embezzled £28,347.41.
She had originally been charged with embezzling £54,903.41, however that figure was reduced following a lengthy period of plea bargaining between the Crown and her solicitor, Gary McIlravey.
Company owner Steve Reilly told The Courier he was pursuing Cromer in the civil court for the money she pleaded guilty to embezzling in December 2014 .
He said: “That day outside the court I was totally shell-shocked by the leniency of the sentence, ie a £5,000 fine and three years to pay with 150 hours’ community service, also over three years.
“That equates to less than an hour a week. What kind of message did Elizabeth Munro send out to other thieves in a position of trust.
“She had plea bargained down to £28,000 when she had originally been charged with stealing closer to £70,000.
“She stole from people who were good to her during one of the worst recessions ever to hit the building trade.
“Thousands of people had lost their jobs during this period and she put her work colleagues at great risk.
“Not only did she steal, but in an attempt to cover her tracks she sabotaged the company accounts which took months to sort out.
“We did not know who had paid us and who had not. This was the worst part of the fraud as it devastated our cash flow.
“The sentencing for this kind of crime is erratic to say the least. There are people stealing a lot less receiving a custodial sentence.
“Cromar ticked all the boxes that are laid down by the sentencing tariffs for a custodial sentence. She was in a position that requires a high degree of trust.
“There were multiple transactions over a period of time. The amount she stole was between £20,000 and £120,000.
“She is still actively pursuing a job as a bookkeeper. I only hope someone else is not caught out.”
After admitting her guilt, the court heard Cromar had spent the money on her lavish lifestyle.
She earned £24,000 a year but was living the high life using the company credit card to finance shopping trips and paying vast sums of cash into her own bank accounts under the name of fictitious suppliers.
Solicitor Gary MacIlravey said he was aware of the civil action but said it was no longer being defended.