A gambling mad bank clerk planned to bet a stagger

A gambling mad bank clerk planned to bet a staggering 48,000
pounds on one horse in a desperate bid to pay back huge sums
he had stolen from his employers, an Old Bailey judge heard
today (Fri).

Mark Scaresbrook, 32, hoped to win a fortune with one last
big gamble which would enable him to put back all the money he
had stolen and therefore avoid detection.

But his luck ran out and when he tried to pay the stolen
cheque for 48,000 pounds into his bank account suspicious staff
alerted his company and he was arrested, the court heard.

Mr David Etherington, defending, said: ‘He knew the day of
reckoning would come and adopted the gambler’s philosophy that
eventually he would win and would be able to pay all the money
back.

‘He was going to put the 48,000 pounds on a horse race and
believed he could win.

‘
Scaresbrook, who worked for the top merchant bank Morgan
Grenfell, pleaded guilty to five charges of theft involving more
than 116,000 pounds.

He also admitted attempting to steal a further 48,000 pounds
in July last year.

He was jailed for two years.

The court heard that Scaresbrook, of Ashenden Road, Rochford,
Essex, was led into gambling by colleagues at his bank who took
him to casinos.

But he became hooked, began gambling on his own, and ran
up huge debts.

Desperate for money to fund his habit the crooked clerk hit
upon a simple scheme to steal cheques from his employers.

Mr Etherington said Scaresbrook, as part of his work, was
allowed to raise company cheques on ‘dormant’ accounts.

He secretly paid the cheques into his own bank
and building society accounts and then covered up the thefts
by cooking the books.

Scaresbrook was arrested on 22 July last year when he tried to
pay the cheque for 48,000 pounds into his account.

The court heard Scaresbrook, who is married with a young child,
had worked for Morgan Grenfell, at their branch in Winchester
Street, Pimlico, SW London, for six years.

He was employed in the deposit and Eurobond sections and was
earning 16,000 pounds a year when arrested.

Mr Etherington said: ‘He was entirely in a world of his own.

Gambling is something which, when it takes a grip on a person,
distorts the way they look on the world.

‘
Scaresbrook kept his gambling and thieving secret from his
wife, the court heard.

Recorder William Denny, QC, told him: ‘This was a gross
breach of trust.

‘Your gambling provides an explanation but not an excuse.

‘
Scaresbrook waved to his wife in the public gallery and wept
as he walked to the cells.

ENDS