Post Office manager avoids jail sentence

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A POST office manager who doctored accounts to covered up losses said to total tens of thousands of pounds at the sub-post office where he had worked since 2002 has been spared jail.

Instead, William Graham, who was based at the Riverhead sub-post office in the Day Lewis chemists was given a 32-week jail sentence suspended for 18 months.

He was also ordered to carry out 100 hours of unpaid work and to pay £3,589 in legal costs.

Sentencing Graham, Judge Charles Macdonald QC said that the losses at the post office were "genuine, unexplained".

He said he accepted Graham had not stolen the money.

But he continued: "You did conceal [the losses]. The advantage to you was you kept your job."

However, he said that having taken into account Graham's good character and family problems he felt able, after consideration, to suspend the sentence.

Maidstone Crown Court was told that Graham was under personal financial pressures at the time of the offence and that he had had to repay a previous £5,000 shortfall in 2006.

He was said to have made false entries concealing the latest losses totalling £65,521.

The court was told he has since paid back the missing money to the Royal Mail.

However, Judge Macdonald declined to make a compensation order because he said the actual losses for which Graham was responsible may not be as high as the £65,521 alleged.

He said that there must have been genuine losses for which the postmaster would be liable before the false accounting took place.

Graham's counsel, Nicholas Cotter, said Graham had made some "poor decisions" as a result of the pressure he was under.

He said that Graham, of Balliol Road, Welling, had "inflated figures" and "was always going to get caught".

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However, Judge Macdonald declined to make a compensation order because he said the actual losses for which Graham was responsible may not be as high as the £65,521 alleged.

He said that there must have been genuine losses for which the postmaster would be liable before the false accounting took place.

Graham's counsel, Nicholas Cotter, said Graham had made some "poor decisions" as a result of the pressure he was under.

He said that Graham, of Balliol Road, Welling, had "inflated figures" and "was always going to get caught".

Change a couple of names and titles , and this article would remind me of a bigger situation.