Confiscation order decreed

A convicted embezzler has been ordered to pay back the £36,000 she stole from a children’s charity.

Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court ordered Beverley Bennie, 37, to repay the full amount to the Kids Come First charity under proceeds of crime legislation and has been given six months to pay up.

She was jailed for 20 months earlier this year after pleading guilty.

The court heard how Bennie stole a total of £96,371 from the charity and Myrtle Coffee in Kirkcaldy.

However Kids Come First was prioritised for repayment under the judgement.

Bennie took on the role of treasurer with Kids Come First, a charity based at the Benarty Centre in Ballingry, Fife.

In 2021, the charity discovered it had limited cash reserves and some staff members could not be paid.

Fife Council instructed charity bosses to hire a forensic accountant to examine the accounts and locate the missing cash.

They found unauthorised cash transfers totalling £12,771.69 made by Bennie between December 2020 and September 2021.

The court also heard Bennie was a business manager with Myrtle Coffee supplying wholesale coffee and vending services.

She had access to the firm's petty cash as well as an electronic cash account.

Sineidin Corrins, deputy procurator fiscal for specialist casework at the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS), said: “Beverley Bennie was convicted of crimes that displayed a betrayal of trust by someone who had financial oversight of funds from a children’s charity and a family business.

“She showed no regard for the impact her crimes would have on vulnerable children or the effect it would have on those trying to run an honest business.

“We take such criminality very seriously. This confiscation order shows that the Crown will not stop at prosecution.

“Even after that conviction was secured, the Crown pursued Proceeds of Crime action to ensure funds she obtained illegally were confiscated.

“Confiscation orders have ongoing financial consequences, meaning we can seek to recover further assets from this individual in the future to reflect the full amount.”