A DEPUTY manager at a carpet store who stole more than £30,000 from his employer to fund his gambling addiction has avoided jail.

Daniel Salmon was working at Tapi Carpets and Floors in Basingstoke when he committed the offence, Winchester Crown Court was told on Friday, December 16.

The 26-year-old was part of the leadership team at the store in St Michael’s Retail Park and at the company’s stand in Homebase when he stole £31,313 between July 19 and August 3.

On six occasions, Salmon refunded money from the company’s card machine to multiple bank cards owned by him.

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Prosecutor Holly Fagan said: “The transactions were discovered by the company and as a result, the company’s south director Antony Brown came to the store on August 5. While Mr Brown was there, Salmon admitted to what he had done

“Salmon said the refunds increased in size as he realised it was not being monitored. The first refund was for £685 and the sixth refund was for £8,650.

"He told Mr Brown that he did the refunds from the card machine rather than the computer system knowing that it wouldn’t notice that way.

“He had the ability to reset the card machine to zero. So, at the end of the day, Salmon would do that and then transfer the money to his bank card and then again reset it to zero. That additional transaction was not picked up sometimes.”

Salmon was terminated from his job on August 5.

He was interviewed by police in September, and he admitted that he used the money to fund his gambling addiction.

Salmon told police that once he realised how easy it was to steal, his intention was to continue until he was caught.

The court was told that Salmon was seeing a counsellor, but neither the counsellor nor his family and friends knew about his addiction at that time.

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He admitted to police that he would pay back the money if he could, but he had lost all the money to gambling.

Salmon, of Swallow Close, Alton, pleaded guilty to theft during an earlier hearing at Basingstoke Magistrates’ Court.

Earlier this year he was given a community resolution and was told to attend a victim awareness course for another offence after he admitted to taking three credit cards in his partner’s name without her knowledge.

Representing himself, Salmon told Judge Susan Evans KC he was sorry for his actions and has not gambled since he was caught.

He said he was seeing a private counsellor twice a week and has resolved the problems with his partner.

In sentencing, the judge considered there was a ‘realistic prospect of rehabilitation’ and handed Salmon a 12-month prison sentence suspended for two years.

Salmon must complete 200 hours unpaid work, and he was also told to pay £500 each month starting from January 2023 towards £6,000 compensation to Tapi Carpets.