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A crooked letting agent who stole more than £40,000 from her boss was caught out when she used the company bank card during her holiday in Benidorm.
Amber-Louise Milne, 42, spent years stealing from her employer and was only exposed when the company’s bank queried the Spanish transaction.
When letting agency owner Brian Stewart checked the finances, he discovered a £25,000 overdraft in the company name.
Milne, 42, pled guilty at Dundee Sheriff Court to embezzlement.
After Stewart realised the money was missing, he phoned Milne while she was still on holiday in the Costa Blanca.
Milne joined BS Properties, which manages properties in Tayside and Angus, in 2013.
Fiscal depute Joanne Ritchie told Dundee Sheriff Court: “BS Properties is a letting and management services business owned by Brian Stewart.
“The company had 150 properties they managed and let for landlords. The accused started employment with the company as a letting agent in 2013.
“She had responsibility for making online payments to landlords and contractors via the BS Properties accounts. She had permission to access the accounts.”
The court heard that near the end of 2019 Stewart received a call from Clydesdale Bank to say the bank cards were being used in Benidorm.
Ritchie added: “Mr Stewart was aware the accused was on holiday there and had access to the bank accounts. He drove to the Forfar Bank of Scotland and was told the company was additionally overdrawn and the balance was minus £25,000.”
Milne told her boss that she was going to ‘fix it’ when she got back from her holiday but police were contacted when she failed to pay back the money.
The court was told that Milne had been embezzling from the company by making small payments to herself and listing them as legitimate purchases, including pretending to be paying for electricity, key cutting and handyman jobs.
She embezzled £14,179 during 2017, £13,000 during 2018, and £16,651 in 2019.
Milne originally faced a charge of embezzling £86,273 from the year she started with the company, but the Crown accepted her guilty plea to the lesser amount of £43,830.
She was granted bail while sentence was deferred for the preparation of social work background reports.
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