Amazon worker stole £7k of goods to pay to bring family from Romania to the UK

Gabriel Scarlat, 37, had been working at the online retail giants Rugeley warehouse when he began taking items such as computer processors, headphones and watches in order to sell on to contacts he had made.

Between May 1 and September 9 he stole 15 processors - small chips that carry out the instructions of a computer program - worth £416 each, which he would then sell on for just £50, Cannock Magistrates' Court heard.

Scarlat, who lived in Walsall at the time of the thefts, pleaded guilty to one charge of theft by employee.

He sold the processors in order to raise £5,000 he needed to bring his wife and son to the UK from his native Romania.

However, he was rumbled after a stock check revealed that a number of items from the Rugeley warehouse were missing and caught on CCTV following an internal investigation carried out while he was on holiday visiting his family.

Prosecutor Emma Thompson said: "This is a breach of trust from an employee on their employer over a four month period.

"After a stock check senior staff noticed that a number of computer processors were missing and not accounted for.

"An investigation was launched and CCTV footage linked the defendant to the disappearance of the processors.

"The defendant was away on holiday at the time but when questioned on his return, made a frank admission.

"A number of processors were then found in his locker, however they could not be resold as they had been taken out of their packaging.

"He admitted that he had been selling the items on for just £50, which is a substantial decrease from their market value."

Altogether, Scarlat stole processors worth £6,240, two watches worth £315, memory cards worth £200 and headphones worth £300.

Defending, Ian Hodnett, said that Scarlat had stole the items in a bid to raise cash to help bring his family to the UK and his actions had resulted in him losing his job.

He said: "This was done for purely financial reasons.

"The defendant's family still live in his native Romania and he needed to find cash to help bring them to this country so they could be together.

"He estimated the cost to be around £5,000.

"He has now lost his job and is living in shared accommodation in London, working on a construction site."

A number of Amazon employees working at the company's Wheelhouse Road fulfilment centre have been stung after thefts.

Last month, Rajit Kaur, a worker who stole more than £5,500 worth of perfume as an 'act of revenge' after becoming disgruntled, was given a suspended prison sentence by magistrates.

Sentencing Scarlat, chief magistrate David Breen ordered he pay £832 in compensation, plus court costs of £275 and an £85 victim surcharge, telling the defendant 'this is not a victimless crime'.