Financial director of police zone Midow risks three years in prison for embezzlement: he stole 660,000 euros

“At first I did it out of necessity, but gradually I used the money to pay for my expensive lifestyle,” said the defendant.

The ball got rolling in 2021 when the bank started asking questions about some suspicious transactions. Guy S was fired shortly afterwards. He confessed that he had embezzled money from his employer.

660,000 euros

For fourteen years he collected almost monthly sums of money of up to 2,000 euros or more. “All together, it is more than 660,000 euros,” the prosecutor said in the Kortrijk court on Wednesday. “The first withdrawals date from 2006. To cover everything up, he falsified documents. As a financial director, he enjoyed the trust of his employer. He abused that trust to pay for his expensive lifestyle. Severe punishment is in order.”

She demanded a three-year prison sentence, six months of which were effective and the rest suspended and a professional ban.

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Slippery Slope

The defendant’s lawyer pointed out that his client spontaneously confessed to the facts. “After a serious bicycle accident in 2008, he got into financial difficulties. He wanted to use the funds for a short time to empty certain needs, but that was of course a slippery slope. It became a kind of addiction.”

In the meantime, S. has already repaid part of it. “Before he was too proud to admit he was in trouble, now it is a matter of honor for him to pay back everything, even if it will take a long time with his income as a garden contractor.”

The lawyer asked for a community service order to be imposed on his client. Sentence on March 29.