West Lothian office worker embezzled almost £800,000 from scrap metal company and bought luxury cars
A crooked office worker embezzled almost £800,000 from her scrap metal merchant employers and splashed the cash on luxury cars and lavish gifts for her family.
Jennifer Conquer stole the huge amount of funds while working as an administrative assistant with Brookfield Metals Recycling Ltd in Linlithgow, West Lothian over a four year period.
Conquer, 39, worked alone in the company’s office and made more than 1,200 payments from the firm’s account into her own and one belonging to her twin sister Hazel Dryburgh.
Conquer spent the embezzled money on buying up luxury vehicles, paying for expensive treats for her friends and family and using it on every day living expenses. She also made payments totalling more than £25,000 to Dryburgh who used the stolen cash to buy two top of the range Land Rovers with personalised number plates.
Conquer pleaded guilty to embezzling £798,743.23 while employed with Brookfield Metals Recycling Ltd between June 2017 and September 2021 when she appeared at Edinburgh Sheriff Court on Thursday, April 2.
Dryburgh, of Blackridge, West Lothian, pleaded guilty to a charge of receiving a quantity of money obtained through criminal acts and use it for personal gain between December 2020 and June 2021 during the same court hearing.
Prosecutor Clare Green told the court Brookfield Metals is based in Linlithgow and is part of the larger Dalton’s Demolitions Ltd firm who are located in Edinburgh.
Conquer was employed as an admin assistant in 2016 and her duties included weighing the scrap metal, providing receipts to customers and having full access to the firm’s computer system.
Ms Green said an internal company investigation was conducted following suspicions over an irregular invoice and payment made by Conquer in September 2021.
The fiscal depute said: “Staff members started to look at customer records created and processed at Brookfield Metals Recycling Ltd. It was at this time they uncovered a high volume of payments had been made to two particular bank accounts which belonged to the accused.”
Conquer, of Inverkeithing, Fife, was confronted by a manager over the payments but she cut off all contact with the company and “ignored any attempted correspondence from her employer”.
The court was told police were alerted to the fraud and officers seized employment records and wage slips relating to Conquer. The police investigation showed the devious office worker had made hundreds of payments totalling £760,723.50 into two bank accounts attributed to her.
Further payments from the scrap metal company’s account into Monzo bank accounts belonging to Conquer and Dryburgh, 39, were also subsequently discovered by police.
Ms Green said: “Banking warrants were sought and executed in relation to each account and the statements were analysed. The statements showed that Jennifer Conquer had used the embezzled funds to make various purchases including every day items, gifts for friends and family and luxury motor vehicles.”
The court heard the bank statements also showed Conquer had made two payments of £12,645 and £12,870 into her sister’s bank account between December 2020 and June 2021.
The fiscal added: “Further police enquiry found that these monies were used to purchase two vehicles with personalised registration plates, a Land Rover Evoke Ranger and a Land Rover Discovery Sport. The combined loss to Dalton’s Demolitions Ltd [was] £798,743.23.”
Conquer was arrested on November 22, 2022 and during a police interview she “spoke openly and gave a full admission to the monies embezzled”.
Dryburgh was arrested on December 1, 2022 and she “spoke openly and freely throughout” her interview and said she knew the money given to her by her sister “had not been obtained legally”. Sheriff Fergus Thomson agreed to continue bail for the pair and deferred sentence for the preparation of a social work report to next month.