A ‘dishonest’ crook who stole thousands of pounds from his employers after they lent him money has been jailed.
Stephen Bonham, of Cambridge Street, Aylesbury, sneaked into his boss’s office on March 29 this year and took three blank company cheques and £82 cash from a tin.
Bonham then wrote three cheques to himself totalling more than £10,000, two of which he cashed.
The 44 year old, who worked as a warehouseman for Schletter UK in Coldharbour Way, was arrested after his acts were discovered.
He pleaded guilty to all charges.
At Aylesbury Crown Court yesterday (Tuesday), Bonham was jailed for nine months for what Judge Joanna Cutts described as ‘serious offences’.
Sentencing, Judge Cutts said: “It’s difficult to really understand why it is that you took those items, save that it gave you some disposable cash.”
The court heard how Bonham had gone to his manager in February saying he could not pay his council tax.
His manager agreed to pay the debt, provided Bonham paid him back.
John Riley, prosecuting, said: “The fact that his boss was willing to lend him money tells the story about the way the company was willing to treat somebody who was in difficulty.”
It was also revealed he had previous convictions for using stolen cheques to pretend to be somebody else and for a burglary, the victim of which was his sister’s friend.