IT manager stole £40,000 from employer to buy computer equipment

An IT manager who stole £40,000 from his employer to buy computer equipment has avoided jail.

Paul McShane, 28, was caught after an audit revealed an overspend at IQA Elecnor in Glasgow’s Hillington in 2019.

Glasgow Sheriff Court heard that McShane was initially an apprentice at the communications firm in 2014 before being promoted in 2018.

After the audit was carried out, the overspend related to orders placed and shipped was found at McShane’s home.

A meeting was held with McShane and the management of the business, where the invoices were shown to him.

Prosecutor Julianna Keenan said: “He was asked to explain why equipment, a large portion of which had no relevance to the company, had been delivered to his home.

“In total, £40,000 of equipment had been invoiced to IQA and delivered to his home.

“McShane tried to justify the orders by claiming that all the material was for business-related work and was on site or within the storeroom at IQA premises.”

The meeting was suspended for a short period for McShane to locate the equipment on the company premises.

After the meeting was reconvened, he was asked again to provide evidence and justification for the orders.

McShane was unable to provide an appropriate justification.

When a manager attempted to explain the seriousness of his actions, McShane replied: “Okay, I admit it, I’ve been stealing.”

He stated that he had been stealing from the firm for some time, and when asked to provide an approximate value, he replied: “In the region of 20,000, maybe more, maybe less.”

McShane, of Coatbridge, Lanarkshire, later handed £10,000 of the equipment to the company’s storeman.

He handed himself in to the police nine months later, and he was charged.

McShane pleaded guilty to a £40,000 embezzlement charge spanning between December 2018 and November 2019.

Sheriff Andrew McIntyre imposed 300 hours of unpaid work and tagged him for three months, keeping him indoors between 9pm and 7am.

McShane will also pay £18,000 to his former employers as he was made subject to a compensation order and will be under supervision for 20 months.

The sheriff told him: “This was perpetrated for no apparent reason other than greed. There were no circumstances or pressures or circumstances which led to this. You had no particular need at the time.

“There was nothing in the background to mitigate it. This was a significant offence. You just took £40,000 of their money for your own gain.

“I could not be blamed for simply selecting a prison sentence just now.

“The period of time since this case is remarkable. You have moved on and sorted out whatever caused you to do this and gained employment in another good job for which you are extremely fortunate to be put in another position of trust. That’s a matter for them.

“I am not satisfied that it’s in the interest of justice or aid your rehabilitation after all this time by sending you to prison.”

Ross Jenkins, defending, earlier told the sentencing that his client is now an asset manager at firm CPRE.

The lawyer said: “This was a serious mistake but out of character and he has learned his lesson.”