Bank adviser who took school's money jailed

A financial adviser for Lloyds TSB who took almost £140,000 from his children's school and from his clients has been jailed for 18 months.

Andrew Bartlett, of Malvern, Worcestershire, took £138,500 in total to prop up a sideline in property development, Gloucester Crown Court heard.

The 48-year-old last month pleaded guilty to two charges of fraud and three of using criminal property.

Bartlett was sentenced to 18 months in prison and told he had committed a "significant breach of trust", the BBC reports.

Bartlett, who worked at a Lloyd's TSB branch in Gloucester branch, committed the offences over a five-year period.

He was arrested in 2010 after an internal bank investigation and told the police it was the only case he was involved in.

However, subsequent inquiries revealed he had been taking money from two customers, putting £11,000 of Lesley Bagshaw's money and £40,000 of Eileen Davis' money into his property development company in 2009.

He also transferred £87,500 from accounts at Dyson Perrins CE School in Malvern, where his children had attended and where he was a governor and chairman of the finance committee.

The court heard that before Bartlett's fraud was uncovered he had repaid the school £68,000 and paid one of his clients back in full - £11,000 plus interest.

The bank later repaid the outstanding money to the school and to the other client. Bartlett then repaid the bank from his pension fund.

In mitigation Matthew Barnes said Bartlett had only "borrowed" the money.

"He has already been punished for his wrong doing in very significant aspects," he said.