 A mum's £180,000 scam where she bought lavish gifts for friends and family was uncovered after she went shopping at B&Q. Tracy Ellis, 52, lived out a 'fantasy life' as she swindled her employer out of huge sums of money over a period of more than five years. Her actions have been described as a 'betrayal' to the small firm for which she worked as a bookkeeper for nearly a decade. Ellis was first employed by Prescot-based building contractor Ingham and Garner Ltd in September 2013, and became 'solely responsible' for its accounts, Liverpool Crown Court heard. Christopher Hopkins, prosecuting, described how Ellis, of Hall Street in St Helens, had the jobs of paying invoices and looking after petty cash as part of her role. But in May last year, company director Jennifer Burrows noticed that the business account had been used to complete a £37.80 transaction at B&Q in St Helens the previous day. She then confronted Ellis, as they were the only members of staff who had been trusted with the pin number for this card. While Ellis – who is also known as Tracy Hatton – initially 'suggested it might have been another employee', she then admitted that she had made the purchase but claimed 'it had been an accident and she had mistaken the company card for her own'. Ellis stole a total of £181,958.95 over the course of 139 separate transactions (Picture: Merseyside Police) This caused Ms Burrows to carry out further checks on the account, at which point she saw that the mother-of-three had repaid the sum 'along with a further payment'. But she also spotted that the card had previously been used to carry out another suspicious transaction just a few days before, while a £300 withdrawal had been made from a cash machine in April. The boss then found a record of payment to a Preston-based skip company on Ellis' desk, a document that stated the fun){kind=link}
NEWS… BUT NOT AS YOU KNOW IT
A mum’s £180,000 scam where she bought lavish gifts for friends and family was uncovered after she went shopping at B&Q.
Tracy Ellis, 52, lived out a ‘fantasy life’ as she swindled her employer out of huge sums of money over a period of more than five years.
Her actions have been described as a ‘betrayal’ to the small firm for which she worked as a bookkeeper for nearly a decade.
Ellis was first employed by Prescot-based building contractor Ingham and Garner Ltd in September 2013, and became ‘solely responsible’ for its accounts, Liverpool Crown Court heard.