Finance director jailed after £1.9m gambling-fueled fraud at Birkenhead firm

A finance director who defrauded a Birkenhead, England-based company of almost £1.9 million ($2.4 million) has been sentenced to prison after his “predilection for play got out of control.

Allan Wood, 59, of Saltersgate in Ellesmere Port, appeared at Liverpool Crown Court on Tuesday (December 23) after admitting four counts of fraud by abuse position related to his role at Cammell Laird.

THE case was first revealed in January 2021, when the allegations were reported to Merseyside Police, sparking an investigation by their economic crime team.

Digging into the company’s finances, detectives discovered the scale of the fraud. For more than a decade, Wood siphoned a staggering amount of money from his employer.

CFO Allan Wood transferred money to gambling and personal spending accounts

Between 2007 and 2008 alone, he dishonestly redirected company funds for his own benefit, transferring more than £1.5 million ($2 million) to personal accounts and using company money to pay his personal credit card bills.

On top of this, Wood signed over £315,000 ($426,000) in what was described as “unsanctioned corporate entertainment”, spending company money on himself, friends and family. This included billing the company for Champions League final tickets and football season tickets. According to the Liverpool EchoWhen interviewed later, he even made a wild claim that the expenses were linked to suspicions of espionage within the company.

In total, his actions left Cammell Laird out of pocket by £1,870,243.

At the time the fraud took place, the company was already under severe financial pressure. Board members had to invest large sums of their own money just to keep the company afloat, while staff faced the very real threat of layoffs and strikes.

Wood was sentenced to five years and three months in prison.

Detective Constable Laura Madden, who led the investigation, said: “This fraud placed a business under significant financial pressure, causing distress and worry to all employees. Let’s also not forget the impact this would have had on their families, as many feared for their jobs.

“This impact has clearly been lost on Wood and he will now have to consider the full consequences of his actions while he serves his prison sentence.

“Fraud can and does have devastating effects on individuals and businesses, and fortunately Wood was unable to cause further harm.” »

Featured image: Merseyside Police

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