Leeds Crown Court: Employee stole £64,000 from Floor Design Wetherby - and has still not paid back a penny

Gary Schulze held a trusted position at family-run Floor Design Wetherby, where his responsibilities included settling client invoices. Leeds Crown Court heard how he abused that trust by diverting money owed to the company into his own bank account or taking cash payments from clients.

Prosecutor Ben Whittingham said he had stolen a total of £64,111.04 between September 2017 and January 2019 when his crimes came to light. It went undetected for so long because he used money intended to pay newer invoices to settle older accounts left unpaid by the thefts.

Jailing Schulze for 16 months, Judge Simon Phillips KC said: “It was persistent and it was calculating. No only did you divert money to your own use, you start to cover your tracks by back-filling using new money.”

The court heard 57-year-old Schulze, of Willow Rise, Tadcaster, confessed when approached by his employers and made a full admission when interviewed by police in March 2019. He later pleaded guilty to a charge of theft by employee.

Jim Littlehales, mitigating, said his client had struggled to find work during the pandemic and then faced difficulties with starting a business of his own. The lack of income meant he had been unable to pay back any of the stolen funds.

Judge Philips told Schulze that his former employers and others “will inevitably have been affected by your breach of trust”. Noting that he had been declared bankrupt, he added: “There’s no immediate prospect of restitution being made.”