PO clerk begs for mercy after judge warns she faces Jail

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Post Office clerk begs for mercy after judge warns she faces jail for stealing £7k from customer

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A former Post Office employee wept in court when told she faces prison for stealing thousands of pounds from a vulnerable customer.

Police found £3,000 cash hidden inside a suitcase in Pamela Burch's attic after a nurse contacted the PSNI over concerns about transactions from a patient's account.

Burch later admitted taking around £7,500 from the account which belonged to a woman with mental health problems.

Downpatrick Crown Court was told the 42-year-old had been "living beyond her means" and at the time of the thefts had travelled on two foreign holidays and purchased a personalised registration plate for her car.

Burch, from Hawthorn Rise, Ballywalter, cried throughout yesterday's hearing and begged to be released when told by Judge Gordon Kerr QC that a prison sentence is "inevitable".

She previously pleaded guilty to 13 counts of false representation and one of possessing criminal property.

The offences took place between July and September 2012 with regular sums of £600 taken from the victim's account.

A prosecutor told the court the woman's nurse rang police when she noticed "unexplained withdrawals" from her patient's account.

The care worker went to the Post Office in Ballywalter and spoke with Burch who told her the victim had asked her to pay an electricity bill for her.

When police spoke with Burch she gave them an envelope containing £4,000. She told them the customer had asked her to keep it until it could be transferred to another bank account.

The victim denied any such agreement was ever made.

When Burch's home was later searched £3,000 was found in a suitcase and another £500 cash in her handbag.

She claimed the money was hers, telling officers she was a "good saver".

Burch cried loudly in court as the facts of the case were told to the judge, repeatedly saying, "I'm sorry".

The prosecutor said Burch's victim was "a vulnerable lady". She said Burch had breached the woman's trust as a Post Office employee.

"There is a sense of this lady endeavouring to live beyond her means."

The court was told the Post Office was in a business owned by Burch's sister and that the criminal activity had destroyed the siblings' relationship.

Burch's marriage was also said to be under strain as a result.

Her lawyer said his client was ashamed of her actions and their impact on her family.

The court was told the Post Office had been targeted in three armed robberies previously which had a deep impact on Burch.

The defence lawyer said the incident had ruined Burch's reputation in the Ballywalter area where she lives.

However, it was claimed, Burch had felt a "great release" by publicly accepting her guilt to the crimes she had concealed from her family circle.

The victim, the court was told, would receive the money taken from her account back in full.

She was remanded in custody until she is sentenced.

Judge Kerr told her: "It is likely a custodial sentence given the aggravating factors is inevitable."

Victim impact reports and character references were given to the judge ahead of sentencing.

One of them was prepared by the addiction charity with which Burch had been doing volunteer work recently.

The court was told Burch had no previous criminal record.

[DB1100]

Do the crime do the time,would she be crying if she had got away with it,I don't think so

[cliffeyhez]

Any mercy would be inappropriate

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Post office worker who stole from ill woman avoids jail

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A former post office employee who wept as she begged a judge to refrain from sentencing her to jail has walked free from court.

Pamela Burch (42) took £7,500 from an account belonging to a woman with mental health problems. She was caught after a nurse reported her concerns to police.

At Downpatrick Crown Court yesterday Burch was handed a six-month prison sentence, suspended for two years.

The court was told the defendant had taken the money to pay for a lifestyle beyond her means, including foreign holidays and an expensive personalised registration plate for her car.

A nurse for the woman Burch took the money from went to the post office where the defendant worked – in her home village Ballywalter – and questioned her over the withdrawals.

She was told the victim had asked Burch to pay an electricity bill on her behalf.

But when police spoke with the defendant, she handed them an envelope containing £4,000.

During a subsequent search of her home, £3,000 in cash was found in a suitcase in Burch's attic and £500 in her handbag.

She initially claimed the money at her home was her savings. However, she later admitted 13 counts of false representation and one of possessing criminal property.

The woman she took the money from was described in court as a vulnerable person with a range of mental health problems.

She fell victim to the thefts between July and September 2012, with sums of £600 regularly taken from her account.

Burch, from Hawthorn Rise in Ballywalter, begged to be released when she was held in custody ahead of her sentencing.

She also cried loudly in court when warned earlier this week that she was likely to be jailed for the offences.

But yesterday at Downpatrick Crown Court she was spared a prison sentence and handed a suspended jail term.

However, her personal life has suffered since the crime, with her sister reportedly disowning her and problems with her marriage arising.

And a call centre job she took up after leaving the post office ended when her then employer was made aware of the offences.

Burch's sister owned the post office in the Co Down village at the time of the offending, with Burch herself employed there.

One of two character references provided to the court in Burch's defence was produced by an addiction charity for which she had been volunteering.