Protracted investigation uncovered fraud by abuse of position
The Hailsham Memorial Institute was left on the brink of insolvency after its former administrator Jeanette Gardner abused her position as an employee to steal thousands of pounds from its accounts.
However, earlier this year, Gardner, who was convicted in 2023 of fraud by abuse of position, fraud by false representation, theft, transferring criminal property and fraud by failing to disclose information, was ordered to repay £147,000 to the club and £8,875 to the Department of Work and Pensions. The repayments followed her misappropriation of staff pension contributions. She was also ordered to pay £25,000 in court costs.
A three-year investigation by Sussex Police’s Economic Crime Unit, which began in 2019, found that Gardner had falsified her employment contract to pay herself a higher salary. She also gave herself unauthorised pay rises, withheld payments to HMRC, engaged in false accounting and laundered £26,000 of the stolen money out of the country to India.
Gardner also manipulated weekly financial records to misappropriate funds from the club and routinely submitted receipts for personal purchases as if they were legitimate club expenses. Additionally, she received payments into her personal bank account for events and services provided by the club. She also failed to hand over approximately £3,000 that had been raised on behalf of the male cancer charity, Orchid.
When questioned about the missing funds, Gardner attempted to fabricate receipts and even went so far as to stage a false discovery of the “missing” cash in an effort to conceal her actions.
According to a lead police investigator, the inquiry was consistently obstructed by Gardner’s deceit and manipulation. He stated that a portion of the stolen funds had been used to finance a lavish lifestyle, including foreign holidays, West End theatre trips and group outings.
Commenting on the case, Roger Isaacs, National Technical Director of NIFA said “Employee theft poses a significant risk to businesses which should consider taking out insurance that will indemnify them for losses. Premiums are typically relatively modest and if claims are made, the policy will often fund an investigation by forensic accountants.”
Sources: Sussex Police
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