Investors who dreamed of restoring a butcher's shop to Worle High Street employed a manager to see it through. But instead of making the business flourish he killed it by pilfering funds as he fed a gambling addiction, a court heard.
Michael Vowles, 28, of Avonmouth Road in Avonmouth, pleaded guilty to theft and two charges of fraud. He appeared before Bristol Crown Court for sentence today (Wednesday, June 29).
Judge Julian Lambert jailed him for a year. He told Vowles: "It is not the money. It is the impact on people that's the most important thing.
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"In the course of well-paid employment and in a position of trust you laid waste to a small business. It was driven into liquidation."
Nicholas Lee, prosecuting, said it was the crown's case that Vowles, employed as manager of Worle Village Butchers, stole £14,000 from the business between September 2017 and June 2018. Vowles estimated he stole £8,000, the court heard.
Mr Lee said in the summer of 2017 Vowles defrauded the business. This was by fraudulent meat orders to the tune of £630 and fraudulent invoices for machinery to the tune of £1,500.
The court was told Investor Francis Bird became suspicious about the shop's takings. It appeared some £1,000 was going missing per month.
Mr Lee said when she took on a supervisory role no more money went astray. Vowles then left and it emerged till records had been wiped and cash sheets had been destroyed.
Mr Lee told the court it emerged Vowles was a regular customer at a local betting shop. Between May and June 2018 he had paid £3,000 in to gambling machines and walked out with £1,500.
'Gambling addiction'
Matthew Jackson, defending, said his client was experiencing mental health difficulties at the time and had put a substantial amount of money into fixed odds betting machines. Mr Jackson told the court: "He must have had a gambling addiction.
"Punishment is not necessary in this case primarily by immediate custody. A prison term now is simply likely to put him in a position where he is more likely to commit offences in the future."
Shop investor Frances Bird told Bristol Live: "He single-handedly ruined our finances and our life for five years and continuing, because the money was missing, we had to inject thousands each month to pay staff and creditors from our other business, this amount owed to our other company was written off in the butcher's liquidation, which placed our business and day job in peril which it still hasn't recovered from.
"We had to take large loans to try and save the business, some we are still paying under personal guarantees. We sold assets and re-mortgaged a property, ruining our pension projections. I had to go work at the shop for free, while injecting money in.
"We lost valuable time with our children, we had to place our disabled daughter in respite as I had to work at the shop to try and save it, and save the staff jobs. Employees at suppliers had their jobs affected by him.
"We had a bad relationship with suppliers, who had dealt with and been owed money by Mike and our health suffered massively. But it was all in vain, the shop ultimately couldn't come back from it and all staff lost their jobs one year later anyway."
Detective Constable Ross Chambers, the police officer in charge of the investigation, said: "To break the trust of an employee is such a terrible way is unforgivable and it has had a monumental impact on the victim and her family. The victim has had to pay out half of her pension investment to cover the losses to the business, caused by Vowles' actions.
"He did not think twice about taking that money and the implications it would have for the business owner. I hope this is a lesson learned and the victim and their family get some justice in today's sentencing."
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