Donna Rowand, 47, form Redditch, appeared at Worcester Crown Court on 9 September and was sentenced five years for fraud by false representation and for false accounting after previously pleading guilty to the offences in August.

For four years between 2019 and 2023, Rowand worked as the sole bookkeeper for Concept Display Systems (South West) Limited, an office furniture manufacturer based in the West Midlands and Plymouth.

Rowand cheated her employers by setting up records of fictitious suppliers and opening bank accounts in the names of the fake companies. She then transferred £678,636 from Concept Display Systems into bank accounts in the name of the fake suppliers.

To try and cover her tracks, she then transferred the money from these false accounts into her own bank account, spending the money on cars and holidays.

The former bookkeeper stole so much from the business that it was forced to close down in October 2023 after 32 years in operation.

The fraud only came to light after both HMRC and HSBC became suspicious after they started chasing the company for payments, including tax penalties and fines.

The owner of the company John Stratton told the court that he had a ‘sickening feeling’ that he was ‘dragging’ what his father had built down.

He also said that the experience had ‘destroyed’ his personality.

At court, Judge Nicholas Cartwright told he pinned the blame for the company going into liquidation on her actions.

The judge said that before the fraud was discovered, Rowan had continued to ‘milk’ the business.

Concept Display Systems went into voluntary liquidation in October 2023 and the statement of affairs showed that the company had over £555,000 in debt.

These included a £121,000 bill to HMRC for unpaid PAYE, national insurance and VAT, along with a £200,000 claim for salaries and a bank debt of £43,000 due to HSBC. In addition, they owed £24,000 in business rates to Plymouth City Council.