Sunderland man stole more than £13,000 from his South Shields employer
A branch manager pinched over £13,000 from his South Tyneside employer in a bid to pay off drug dealers who had threatened to kill him, a court heard.
Michael Earls, 32, stole from South Shields-based City Plumbing Supplies between December 2023 and the following March.
Earls, of Berwick Avenue, Town End Farm, Sunderland, paid money into his personal bank account from non-existent refunds he claimed had been paid out to customers.
But he was rumbled when his assistant grew suspicious and called in his regional boss.
At South Tyneside Magistrates' Court, Earls pleaded guilty to a charge of fraud by abuse of position, with the full amount taken being £13,077 – and he could be jailed.
The court adjourned the case for an all-options report, opening the way to a possible custodial sentence for Earls when later sentenced.
Prosecutor Christopher O’Brien said: “At the time of this offence, the defendant was employed as the branch manager.
“The defendant in that capacity fraudulently processed a number of customer refunds into his own Santander account.
“Discrepancies in the store accounts were first discovered by his assistant branch manager, who tried to reconcile branch finances.
“There were negative amounts which should have been positive amounts. They were then flagged to the regional manager.
“All the amounts had been processed by the defendant and all involved customer refunds, despite no customers having returned any purchased items.
“The defendant later admitted in interview that this was carried out due to a cocaine addiction, and he had accumulated drug debts.
“Prior to this offence, he was of good character and has no previous convictions.”
Syed Ahmed, defending, said: “This offence goes back almost two years. What he has done has brought significant shame to his family. There is an explanation.
“When arrested, he provided a full account, making frank admissions that he had gained a cocaine addiction and had accumulated significant debts to drug dealers in Sunderland.
“His family were terrified of that. He has suffered death threats. He has gone on to take the money. He should have sought help, but he buried his head in the sand.”
Magistrates granted Earls unconditional bail to be sentenced at the same court on Wednesday, February 18.