Three guilty of £750k theft from business
THREE men have been convicted after stealing £750,000 from the Tarleton firm where they worked.
The trio, who worked at LS Systems, transferred the horticultural firm’s money to accounts controlled by themselves over seven-year period, as well using its eBay account to sell items bought using the stolen money.
David Scott, 53, of Moss Lane, Burscough, was jailed for seven years for his role in the scam after more than £700,000 of the stolen money was transferred to bank accounts he controlled, over a period between September 2008 and April 2014.
Some £600,000 of that money was used to buy homes across Lancashire, with a further £99,000 – taken between 2013-14 – spent on third party supplies, goods and services for the improvement and development of Scott’s address in Eccleston.
Colin Balshaw, 45, of Heathfield Road, Southport and Richard Adderley, 32, of Station Road, Preston, were each given suspended sentences of 10 months and ordered to do 200 hours unpaid work for their roles.
All three were were arrested after suspicious activity was spotted on company accounts in 2014 and they were this month sentenced at Preston Crown Court.
Accountants had discovered a number of transactions had been made in previous years, with large sums of money withdrawn. These included:
Close to £18,000 being transferred to a bank account between November 2007 and May 2008. This account was controlled by David Scott.
Close to £128,000 being transferred to the same account between September 2008 and November 2013.
A further £600,000 withdrawn to another account under Scott’s control between September 2008 and September 2013.
Balshaw and Adderley were implicated in the investigation through the sale of Wellington boots, with officers discovering that, between November 2012 and December 2012, approximately £27,000 of Hunter Wellington boots were delivered to an address in New Longton.
The pair, alongside Scott, had bought the footwear using LS Systems accounts then sold the items using the company’s eBay profile.
The profits, valued at around £100,000, were then removed from the LS Systems PayPal account and transferred to the accounts of Adderley and Balshaw. It is later believed this cash was handed on to Scott.
Scott, Balshaw and Adderley were arrested and charged with conspiring to steal and removing criminal property. Scott was also charged with theft from an employee.
Balshaw and Adderley pleaded guilty, with Scott pleading not guilty and going to trial.
Scott was jailed for seven years and three months on March 2 following a trial at Preston Crown Court.
Det Con Michael Mason, of Lancashire Police, said: “This was a lengthy and complex investigation into the criminal activi- ties of three men working in positions of trust at LS Systems.
“Scott, who was clearly a controlling and intimidating figure, manipulated the internal systems and stole vast sums of money. Along with Adderley and Balshaw, he purchased Hunter Wellington boots through the company, selling these on eBay accounts.
“It is clear to me these men had little interest in the company they worked for and instead sought to maximise the money they could extort.
“I must thank our colleagues at the National Crime Agency who assisted at the start of the enquiry and to various colleagues within Lancashire Constabulary who assisted with this complex and resource intensive investigation.”
Proceeds of Crime Act proceedings have now begun to help recover some of the stolen money.