Gympie mum who stole $7000 from Fisherman’s Haul wiped away the tears in court this week
The Gympie mum, a close family friend of her struggling bosses, wiped away the tears as she was sentenced for her crime in Gympie Magistrates Court
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The owners of Gympie business Fisherman’s Haul discovered via CCTV that one of their employees, and a close family friend, stole thousands of dollars from them while she worked.
Emma Elizabeth Ritchie, 38, pleaded guilty in Gympie Magistrates Court to stealing as an employee on February 1, 2021, and was sentenced on Tuesday, April 27, 2021.
Magistrate Kurt Fowler told the court the stealing started on September 28, 2019, and didn’t stop until December 4, 2019, when Ritchie was confronted by her bosses.
Ritchie, a mother who lives in Gympie, stole a total of $7268 in cash from the family business on 94 occasions, across 69 shifts.
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Appearing in court on Tuesday, Ritchie wiped tears away from her eyes while Mr Fowler discussed her behaviour.
The court heard she had been stealing the money to live as she had a Centrelink debt to deal with, but also knew the financial struggle her friends were having with their business.
“You were in a position of trust,” Mr Fowler said.
“You caused distress on the business to the extent that they were forced to take a further loan.”
The court heard Ritchie did not just steal money but took items of stock with no intention of reimbursing the owners.
“This conduct did not stop by your own hand but because of the detection and being confronted,” Mr Fowler said.
“The community must be deterred from such conduct.”
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Ritchie was ordered to pay the $7268 in restitution and was sentenced to 12 months jail, suspended for two years.
A conviction was recorded.
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