Cleaner stole £31k after Openshaw charity shop refund error

Image copyright Cavendish Press

A cleaner spent £31,000 in a day after a charity accidently transferred more than £90,000 into her bank account.

Comfort Konadu, from Manchester, was returning an item to a charity shop for a £9 refund when the mistake happened.

But instead of alerting her bank or the charity of the unexpected windfall, the grandmother of 12 “fell prey to temptation and acted dishonestly”.

Konadu, 52, was jailed for 15 months, suspended for two years after admitting theft at Manchester Crown Court.

The court heard how staff inadvertently added two noughts and four other figures while entering the electronic credit note into the till at the Mencap shop in Openshaw in October 2019.

Once she realised the error, Konadu, of Openshaw, transferred £57,000 into other accounts including those of her family and friends.

‘Great shame’

The charity quickly discovered the error but they only managed to retrieve two thirds of the missing money. It is not known what the rest of the cash was spent on.

It is believed the charity, which helps people with learning difficulties, will now be liable for the loss, because it was caused by human error.

She will now face a Proceeds of Crime hearing where she will be expected to return the outstanding £31,000 – which represents 18 months’ worth of profits for the charity shop.

Konadu initially claimed she had been expecting £12,000 from another source.

When she was realised it was higher than expected she said she had tried to raise the issue with her bank but inquires revealed this was false.

Defence counsel Max Saffman said Konadu was “a hardworking lady the vast majority of the time”.

Sentencing Judge Nicholas Dean QC said Konadu “fell prey to the temptation to use the money she knew perfectly well wasn’t hers”.

“That is out of character for you and you have brought on yourself great shame and dare say a very great deal of anxiety,” he added.

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