Bank Workers Admit to Stealing £300,000 from Former Manchester City Footballers
Paul Sherwood and Paul Hanley, two employees of the Co-op bank, have pleaded guilty to stealing a total of £240,000 and £70,000 respectively from the accounts of former Manchester City footballers Djamel Belmadi, Daniel Van Buyten, and Vicente Vuoso. The thefts took place over a 15-month period, with the thieves using their colleagues' bank accounts to launder the stolen cash. The three footballers were unaware of the thefts, which were orchestrated by Sherwood and enabled by Hanley.
Key Takeaways:
- Paul Sherwood, a 25-year-old cashier at the Co-op bank, masterminded the theft of £240,000 from the accounts of three former Manchester City footballers over a 15-month period.
- Paul Hanley, a 20-year-old supervisor at the same branch, assisted Sherwood in hiding the theft and stole over £70,000 from the players' accounts.
- The three victims - Djamel Belmadi, Daniel Van Buyten, and Vicente Vuoso - had left Manchester City within a short time of the thefts, which made it easier for the thieves to secretly divert funds from their accounts.
- The prosecution argued that the thieves targeted the footballers because they left the club quickly and did not regularly use the accounts, making it harder for them to notice the missing money.
Statistics:
- £240,000 stolen by Paul Sherwood from the accounts of Djamel Belmadi, Daniel Van Buyten, and Vicente Vuoso.
- £70,000 stolen by Paul Hanley from the accounts of the same footballers.
- 15 months: the duration of the thefts.
- January 2002 to 2003: Djamel Belmadi was a Manchester City player.
- Summer and autumn 2002: Vicente Vuoso was a Manchester City player.
- January to May 2004: Daniel Van Buyten was a Manchester City player.
- £230,000: the amount of money left in Djamel Belmadi's bank account when he left Manchester City.
- January 27: the date set for the sentencing of Paul Sherwood and Paul Hanley.
Sources:
- Manchester Magistrates Court
- Alan Richardson, the prosecution lawyer.