A mum-of-three who enjoyed a lavish "fantasy life" saw her scam come crashing down after a £37.80 purchase at B&Q. Tracy Ellis swindled her employer out of £180,000 over a period of more than five years.
Liverpool Crown Court heard yesterday (July 10) how the 52-year-old, who had been "highly trusted" by her bosses, used the cash to shower loved ones with gifts. But Ellis was confronted after her trip to B&Q, before an investigation uncovered 139 transactions she made, wrongly using company funds.
Her actions were described as a "betrayal" to the small firm which employed her as a bookkeeper for almost 10 years, the Liverpool Echo reports. The court heard that Ellis was first employed by building contractor Ingham and Garner Ltd, based in Prescot, Merseyside, in September 2013.
