David Timothy Keith Quemard directed printing and embroidery payments meant for Lyndale Sport to his own company, Interior Linens, and also stole stock to sell on through his own business.
The 46-year-old had been working at the company for seven months when the fraud began.
The court heard that he used a variety of methods to commit the offences, including stealing stock, ordering stock through Lyndale for use by his own business, stealing cash payments and invoicing Lyndale customers from his own business for payment.
Quemard admitted 50 counts of larceny as a servant – one of which related to a previous job at textiles business Howtex – and was jailed for 21 months.
The court heard Quemard’s crimes took place over a two-year period between 2012 and 2014.
In a victim impact statement read out in court, the company’s owner said that the crimes had had a dramatic impact on the business from which it ‘may never fully recover’.
Crown Advocate Richard Pedley, prosecuting, suggested that Quemard should be jailed for 30 months for the offences. He said: ‘The admissions also extended to the defendant accepting he had abused his position at Lyndale. He stated that his own parlous finances may have driven him to offend.’
The court heard that no luxuries were bought with the money taken and that it had been used to support Quemard’s family and clear some debts.
Advocate Jane Grace, defending, asked the court to impose a community service order rather than a jail sentence. She said that Quemard had shown ‘genuine remorse’ for his actions and that his offending had been facilitated by a lack of checks and balances at Lyndale.
However, the court felt Quemard’s crimes were too serious to avoid a custodial sentence.
Delivering the 21-month jail term, the Bailiff, Sir William Bailhache, presiding, said: ‘This court has said before that unless there are exceptional circumstances a sentence of imprisonment is inevitable for dishonesty where there is a breach of trust. Here, there is a total breach of trust. You were in total charge of the business.
‘While it may have been foolish to leave you in that position without checks and balances, that only further shows the extent of your breach of trust.
‘It is not a question, as you have written to us, of being stupid. It is a question of dishonesty.’
Sir William was sitting with Jurats Anthony Olsen and Sally Sparrow.
