Trusted employee stole almost £3,000 from Specsavers

Jessica Ball, 24, was sentenced after previously pleading guilty to an offence of theft by employee at Specsavers, in Southwater, Telford.

A total of £2,935.13 was stolen.

She committed the crime between April 1, 2017 and October 14, 2017.

Responsibility

Judge Peter Barrie said: "You were employed at Specsavers. You had been given responsibility for the cash that was taken. So it was up to you to prepare the records so that it could be taken to the bank.

"What you did was to bank less than what was taken and put the difference in your pocket. This happened repeatedly on at least 25 occasions over a period of six and a half months, so that by the time you were taken to task over it the total sum was just under £3,000 that was taken.

"There was nobody else involved in the process of dealing with cash and it seemed to me that the responsibility was yours. It was an important trust that your employer gave to you."

Systematic

He added that it was "serious systematic offending".

However, the judge said Ball was entitled to credit for her guilty plea. He said the defendant, who is now four months pregnant, had found a new job and hoped to make a fresh start.

For the theft Ball, of Bishopdale, Brookside, was given a four-month jail term suspended for 12 months.

The court heard due her pregnancy she was unfit for unpaid work in the community and instead she will be made subject to an electronically-monitored curfew between 7pm and 7am for eight weeks.

She must pay £650 compensation to Specsavers and the victims' surcharge.

The hearing at Shrewsbury Crown Court was also told that she may face civil proceedings relating to the matter.