London - A woman who stole £90 000 from her employer has been spared jail after claiming to have suffered post-traumatic stress disorder following the Tunisia beach shootings.
An Islamic State-inspired gunman killed 38 people, including 30 Britons, during the terrorist attack in June 2015.
The impact of witnessing the slaughter while holidaying in Sousse compounded existing mental health problems suffered by Donna Louise Smith since her teenage years, a court heard.
Smith admitted stealing the cash over an 18-month period by making more than 400 payments to herself. The 40-year-old had worked at an estates management company run by Helen Standing for 15 years and had a close friendship with her employer. When the thefts came to light after an audit of company accounts, Smith sent her boss a confession by text, saying: "I’m sorry, I will pay them back."
Her message added: "I was desperate and so ashamed Helen, I had debts backing up and stole the money. I know you have been nothing but good to me. I’m a disgrace and I have to live with this for the rest of my life."
Smith swayed from side to side in the dock at Preston Crown Court as Joe Allman, prosecuting, described how an external accountant had reviewed the business accounts of the company, Helen Standing Ltd, and asked for an explanation of two payments.
Miss Standing discovered that the accounts were held in the name of Smith’s husband Neil. She contacted her employee, who admitted the theft in a text message.
Smith, from Preston, was the firm’s management accountant and secretary and one of her daily roles was to pay bills and manage cash flow. She had got into financial difficulties following the death of her first husband. She had accumulated gambling debts and owed pay day loan companies.
The court heard that Miss Standing had allowed the Smiths to live rent free in one of her properties for a time after she learned of her employee’s money problems.
Their relationship was so close that Miss Standing was a guest at the couple’s wedding.
Bob Golinski, defending, said: ‘It’s clearly a significant breach of trust. The worst aspect of this is that she broke the trust of her friend.
‘The background to her debt is a curious one. She does have a history of mental health difficulties since her teenage years and most recently she has been diagnosed with PTSD following her presence at the dreadful shootings in Tunisia.’
Smith, who pleaded guilty to theft, was given a 16-month prison sentence suspended for two years. Miss Standing, whose company is linked to the pub trade and based in Preston, did not wish to comment.