Deborah Swift, 54, from St Helens, has been jailed for two years and eight months after being convicted of fraud and theft for the third time. She siphoned more than £5,000 from Haydock Park Golf Club in Newton-le-Willows and over £20,000 from Kelsall Hill Equestrian Centre in Tarporley, Cheshire.
Golf club theft
Swift, previously known as Deborah Jukes, was asked to look after the accounts at the golf club for a short period in 2023, where she had access to the safe and was tasked with taking bar takings to the bank. After a few weeks, the office manager noticed cash was missing. When challenged, Swift claimed the money was at home but refused to let him accompany her, accusing him of intimidating her.
During this time, Swift texted a friend asking to borrow £5,000. A judge noted this was an attempt to "give the impression" she had the money, when she had "clearly squandered it." When she left the club, she took paying-in books and transaction sheets to "thwart proper investigation" into her actions. She did repay some money.
Equestrian centre fraud
In September 2024, while still on police bail, Swift was employed as an accountant at Kelsall Hill Equestrian Centre. Within three weeks, she began making unauthorised payments to herself, totalling £17,838, according to prosecutor Bernice Campbell. Between September and December 2024, she also overpaid her own salary by £3,639.
Swift took extensive time off in October and November, prompting a review of her hours. She provided a handwritten note, but the timings did not match CCTV or computer records, including a claim that she worked 33 hours straight. To cover up her crimes, she failed to make necessary pension payments and missed payments on an attachment to earnings order, risking a £1,000 fine for the company.
Arrest and trial
When challenged, Swift initially claimed she had taken an advance on her wages before admitting what she had done. She sent texts to the firm's boss promising to repay the money, but never did. Upon arrest, she called the allegations a "pile of s***e" and told police she had permission for the advances, describing them as part of an 'escape plan' because she 'didn't like the atmosphere'.
In a victim impact statement, the company's boss said he trusted Swift "wholly and implicitly" and spent months trying to "unpick the mess" she left in the books, calling it "financially devastating."
Sentencing
Swift, of Gibfield Road, St Helens, pleaded guilty to fraud by abuse of position and theft by employee regarding the equestrian centre. She denied two counts of fraud and one count of theft related to the golf club but was found guilty after a trial.
Defending, James Heyworth said Swift had endured "significant childhood trauma" and had been diagnosed with PTSD and alcohol dependence syndrome. He noted she had "accrued a significant amount of debt" but was not living a lavish lifestyle, surviving on "a combination of benefits." He added that she had not addressed the underlying causes of her behaviour, and there seemed to be "almost some level of compulsion" as "she knows she's going to get caught as she always gets caught."
Recorder Kristian Cavanagh said there was no "realistic prospect of rehabilitation," telling Swift: "You are ultimately a serial fraudster who takes the opportunity to steal from those who employ you."
