Crook’s £250k con folds f irm
40-year-old faces jail over thefts
A CROOKED accounts manager caused a company to fold after pocketing more than £250,000.
Kathleen Ross stole the cash over four years from Glasgow management training firm Campbell McWilliams.
She worked for her aunt’s accountancy business, which handled Campbell McWilliams’s books.
When concerns were first raised about her it was claimed ‘all was well’.
Heather Campbell, owner of the training firm, later learned money was missing and confronted Ross, who burst into tears.
Glasgow Sheriff Court was told of the devastating impact the scam had on Miss Campbell, 53.
Prosecutor Amy Hunter said yesterday: ‘As a result of the fraud, Miss Campbell was advised to dissolve her company. This happened in February 2020. She set up a new business with no trading history. She required a high-interest loan to meet its obligations.
‘The impact of the fraud lasted around a year during which she was unsure whether she would be in a financial position to retain her business and home.’
Ross now faces jail after she admitted embezzling £253,966 between February 2014 and July 2018.
She was bailed for reports by Sheriff Sean Murphy, QC, pending sentencing next month. The 40-yearold, of Netherlee, Glasgow, began work at Benham Conway and Co in 2005.
As she was not a qualified accountant her work was overseen, including by her aunt, Kathleen Benham.
Ross was put in charge of Campbell McWilliams’s bank account, with Miss Benham checking on her.
But fiscal Miss Hunter said: ‘On 200 separate occasions, Ross accessed the bank account and transferred money to her own.
‘This was a breach of her trust and in total she embezzled £253,966, with the sums varying from £200 to around £9,000.’
The scam included Ross using false reference numbers for suppliers. Though Miss Campbell had worries about her, Miss Hunter told the court: ‘Her aunt examined the accounts and reassured Miss Campbell all was well.’
But after Miss Campbell discovered further account discrepancies Ross later confessed to her aunt and has since repaid £26,993.