Book-keeper jailed for stealing €98,000 from Michel Jewellers

A former book-keeper for Michel Jewellers in Cork who stole €98,000 from his employer through 176 separate transactions over an 18-month period was jailed for a year yesterday.

Judge Seán Ó Donnabháin imposed a three-year sentence with the last year suspended in the case against Anthony O’Meara, a father of five, who had an addiction to online gambling.

His barrister, Sinead Behan, said he was gambling on his smartphone at all hours of the day and night.

Detective Garda Daragh Murray said O’Meara stole the €98,000 in a series of actions, namely altering amounts, taking money that was to have been lodged for his employer, and transferring money to his own account electronically.

Judge Ó Donnabháin said he was less concerned about the methodology and more concerned about the fact that there was a systematic theft over a long period. “As a bookkeeper he devised a deliberate and continuous system of depriving his employer of this money.

“It started with small amounts and continued over 18 months,” the judge said.

Det Garda Murray said the thefts were of amounts from €20 to €3,500 but mainly for a few hundred euro each time from January 6, 2012, to July 19, 2013.

The detective said jeweller Tim Keane noticed some discrepancies in the accounts and alerted gardaí.

He said Mr Keane’s attitude was compassionate in that he did not want to see the defendant jailed but he did want to be compensated.

Det Garda Murray said: “It is a sad case. He has never ever been in trouble before.” The judge said: “It is a sad case also to give a fella a job and him to take €98,000 from you.”

Ms Behan said the defendant’s wife, who had health issues, had managed to raise €3,125 towards compensation, accepting that it was minuscule in the context of what was stolen.