‘The deceit and dishonesty was immense’ from 67-year-old jailed for swindling boss out of £175k

A MOORLANDS woman who stole money from her employers to fund a wedding, buy herself a hot tub and exotic holidays has been jailed.

Susan Bailey gave herself a £33,000 pay rise and managed to fund a house extension and her landscaped garden from cash she stole from her employer.

The court heard the 67-year-old, from Werrington, had worked as a financial administrator since 2001 for Palfreyman Power Limited in Stoke.

Between May 1, 2014 and July 29, 2016, Bailey set up a fake company which she used to move the large funds around.

She used the company’s money to fund her extravagant spending, which included paying for her niece’s wedding and £30,000 ‘gifted inheritance.’

It also included Stoke City Football

Club corporate hospitality packages, long-haul holidays and numerous home improvements including a new drive, an extension, a hot tub, landscaped garden and expensive soft furnishing.

During her time working there, she also gave herself a £33,000 pay rise unbeknown to her boss.

After a lengthy investigation by detectives from Staffordshire Police, it was discovered that Bailey withdrew vast sums of cash and attempted to disguise this by fabricating payments to staff, wages, suppliers, bills, hospitality - inventing a fictitious company to hide her dishonesty.

Bailey, right, had argued that she moved money around to help the business as it was in ‘financial trouble.’

But she later pleaded guilty to 11 charges of fraud by abuse of position at an earlier hearing and has now been sentenced at Stoke-on-trent Crown Court.

Bailey, formerly of Tudor Rose Way,

Norton, Stoke-on-trent, and now living in Hulme Road, Werrington, was jailed for 40 months for stealing a total of £175,000 from her employers.

Paul Gibson, director of the firm she worked for, told the court: “I was absolutely devastated when I discovered the scale of her theft and treachery and for how long it had been going on.

“I still find it unbelievable that she could steal and betray me on an almost daily basis and still act normally with me and my family.”

Detective Constable Gary Cliffe, of Staffordshire Police, said: “The deceit and dishonesty from Bailey and how she abused her position was immense.

“Bailey’s responsibility was to safeguard the financial interests of the company and not act against it.

“She took a huge sum of money from a company that trusted her and employed her and used it to live the high life.”