Wexham,North Wales - Tesco Wrexham department boss stole merchandise worth £19,500

Published date: 15 January 2016 | 

Published by: Staff reporter
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A SUPERMARKET manager stole a large number of electrical items from his employer and sold them on to other shops or claimed refunds.

Dean Wright, an alcoholic, stole property valued at more than £19,500 over a three-year period between April 2012 and October last year. 

Wright, 39, of Acton Park Way in Wrexham, manager of the electrical goods department at the town’s Tesco store, was spared immediate imprisonment yesterday at Mold Crown Court.

The judge, the Recorder Richard Williams, imposed a 16-month prison sentence, suspended for a year, with 300 hours’ unpaid work.

He was also placed on a tagged curfew between 8pm and 6am for 112 days.

The judge said Wright was in a position of empowerment with a considerable degree of trust and responsibility within the company.

But over a period of three-and-a-half years he persistently stole relatively high-value goods from Tesco worth more than £19,500.

Suspicions were raised but it was fair to say he did not conduct his offending in a way that suspicion would falsely fall on others, the judge said.

He had helped the police with ascertaining where he had sold the property and that had enabled the prosecution to calculate he had raised about £12,000 from his dishonesty.

The judge said the £19,500 loss put forward was the retail loss and not the wholesale cost to the company to replace them. He did not make a compensation order.

He told Wright it was a breach of a high degree of trust. 

It was a stark choice but he had decided “with some hesitation” to suspend the sentence.

Prosecutor David Mainstone said the suspicion began to fall on Wright who would take items to the store for refund when they did not have tags on them.

He had his own key to the storeroom instead of signing for it each time he went in and another member of staff was concerned when the defendant was seen selling a brand new item at another shop.

An internal investigation found irregularities, but he denied any wrongdoing.

During his interview he asked for a break and did not return. He was not employed again.

He made full and frank admissions in police interview and it emerged that he had accounts with a number of shops in Ellesmere Port and Wrexham where he would sell items.

That revealed that he had sold more than 300 items and had received about £12,000.

Andrew Green, defending, said his client had a new job. He was in debt, had alcohol and depression problems, but had reduced his alcohol intake and was already seeking help for his alcohol issues.

Wright was in daily contact with his young son and Mr Green said that the ripple effect of a prison sentence would go well beyond the defendant himself.

He deeply regretted what had occurred and wished that he could turn the clock back.

In a letter to the court, Wright said he would have to live with what he had done for the rest of his life.

“He had led down his family and friends but made no excuses and fully accepted responsibility and his guilt.

References showed that Wright was held in very high regard.

see-http://www.leaderlive.co.uk/news/157327/tesco-wrexham-department-boss-stole-merchandise-worth-19-500.aspx