Rowling’s former PA was ‘good at lying’
Court hears from author’s husband in €27k fraud case
JK Rowling’s husband told a court yesterday he was astonished how ‘good at lying’ his wife’s PA was when he confronted her over an alleged £ 24,000 (€27,000) fraudulent shopping spree.
The Harry Potter author is suing her former employee Amanda Donaldson, 35, for using a company credit card to spend thousands on high-end cosmetics, food and even two luxury cats.
Her husband, Dr Neil Murray, uncovered the alleged fraud when Ms Donaldson stole a £400 (€450) cash deposit for a Christmas party at a Michelin-starred restaurant – then faked restaurant emails to cover it up.
Giving evidence yesterday, Dr Murray said he was astonished when Ms Donaldson ‘ l ooked straight at me and blatantly lied’ when he challenged her.
He said Ms Donaldson, who was sacked by Ms Rowling last year, stole Harry Potter merchandise intended for sick and dying children, then sought to blame other members of staff.
The PA, a mother- of-two from Lanarkshire, Scotland, is accused of using a business credit card for personal spending that included £3,629 (€4,077) in Molton Brown and more than £1,800 (€2,000) on coffee.
Dr Murray told the court: ‘Amanda had always adopted a lively, slightly bubbly, a bit scatty demeanour.
‘I thought she might be emotional or run about the office looking for bits of paper but what I found was a completely different personality.
‘She looked at me and blatantly lied about giving that money to the restaurant and lied about other things. I was taken aback at how good at lying she was.’
Dr Murray said: ‘I firmly believe she has stolen a substantial amount of money and a substantial amount of Harry Potter merchandise from the office which was to be given to sick and dying children.’
He added: ‘She has consistently denied it throughout the whole disciplinary process which led to her dismissal and continues to deny it.’
Ms Rowling, who has an estimated fortune of £650million, is seeking nearly £24,000 in damages as a ‘matter of principle’.