Sarah Cunningham, a newly-employed assistant accountant at Velo Systems in Manchester, committed theft amounting to over £35,000, which led to significant financial issues for the company. This incident resulted in multiple layoffs and the eventual sale of the business at a loss.

Cunningham, aged 41, began her employment at the east Manchester firm on April 5, 2019. Despite having limited access to the company's financial systems, she exploited a loophole by creating an account with a similar name to a current partner company and began transferring funds illicitly.

Her fraudulent activity commenced on April 29, 2019, with a transaction of £4,550. Over the next few weeks, additional transactions brought the total illegal transfers to £35,810.10 by May 20, 2019. The following day, her actions were discovered by the company's accountant who contacted the bank and authorities.

Cunningham was arrested, and investigations revealed several high-value purchases and monetary transfers to family members. Although initially denying the allegations in police interviews, she later expressed remorse during court sessions.

Her actions severely impacted the business owner, Aria Taheri, who faced sleepless nights and had to inject personal funds into the company. Taheri’s efforts to stabilize the company failed, leading to job losses and his eventual decision to sell.

Despite the gravity of her offense, Cunningham was handed a suspended sentence due to her ongoing battle with cervical cancer. She received a 22-month suspended prison term with conditions for rehabilitation and a curfew.