Employee who stole $270,000 jailed

A Hamilton office worker who stole $270,000 from her employers used the money to build a family home and a children's playhouse.

Julia Catherine Davis, 40, was yesterday jailed for three years after admitting stealing the money from a small family-owned business.

Davis had earlier pleaded guilty to three representative charges of theft as a servant and two representative charges of theft by a person in a special relationship.

The Hamilton District Court heard that Davis was employed as an office administrator, and later office manager, by Hamilton-based company Sealcoat Central Limited, from June 2000 to October 2005.

The company, which supplied road safety signs and equipment to councils, at the time was owned and operated by husband and wife Pat and Karen Gallagher. Over five years Davis stole $277,826.99 from the Gallaghers and collected more than $14,000 in overpaid wages.

Crown prosecutor Jacinda Foster said Davis' offending had begun only six weeks after she joined the company.

As office manager, Davis was entrusted with all the business transactions and had a large degree of control over the company's bank accounts. She also had access to the Gallaghers' personal Visa account.

The court heard Davis was entrusted with setting up business systems which she then used to defraud the Gallaghers.

Her fraud included large, regular payments to a GE Finance account in her name and payments to a bank account.

"It was a systematic series of thefts committed under the guise of legitimate business transactions," Ms Foster said. "She mercilessly exploited her employers for her own gain."

Davis used the stolen money to buy materials for her new family home and bought a cubby house for her children.

Ms Foster said Davis had yet to apologise to the Gallaghers and a pre-sentence report indicated a lack of remorse or empathy for her victims.

Defence counsel Kit Clews said Davis' conviction had caused her guilt, shame and depression, and noted a "goodwill payment" of $87,991.80 to the Gallaghers.

Judge Wolff said Davis' offending was among the most serious of its kind and had significantly impacted on the Gallaghers and their family.

Davis' actions were premeditated and she had used a sophisticated system to hide her offending.

Pat Gallagher, who sold the business in March, told the Times he was pleased with the prison sentence and would pursue a civil case against Davis to try and recoup more money.