Parts manager defrauded Winchburgh Ferrari garage out of thousands of pounds

An employee at a high end garage ordered thousands of pounds worth of parts to sell on for private profit, a court heard earlier this week.

John Walmsley, of Pitcorthie in Dunfermline, Fife.

John Walmsley pretended to suppliers that the goods and services were needed for customer orders at Stewart Roden Motors, a Porsche and Ferrari specialist in Winchburgh. But in a course of dishonesty lasting nearly two and a half years the parts manager secretly sold on expensive components and services to his own “customers” and pocketed the cash.

Walmsley (37), pleaded guilty at Livingston Sheriff Court on Monday to obtaining £36,800 by fraud between May 2016 and September 2019. He was originally charged with profiting to the tune of more than £50,000 but the Crown accepted his guilty plea to the lesser amount.

The court was told that Walmsley pretended to his employers that payment for the motor parts or services was required for customer orders, knowing that the customer orders no longer existed or were no longer required.

The charge states that he induced the firm’s suppliers to supply goods and services and induced Stewart Roden Motors to pay for them.

Depute fiscal Roshni Joshi moved for sentence and revealed that Walmsley, of Pitcorthie in Dunfermline, Fife, had no previous criminal record.

Alan Jackson, defending, said he anticipated that the court would require a report into Walmsley’s background before passing sentence and reserved his plea in mitigation until then.

Sheriff Douglas Kinloch agreed. He told Walmsley: “Given the amended sum is a very large amount I’m going to require reports.”He adjourned the case until 17 February for a criminal justice social work report and an assessment of Walmsley’s suitability for a restriction of liberty order.​​​​​​​