Wednesday

KPMG director Andrew Wetherall stole £545,000

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A former finance director who stole more than £500,000 to fund his wife’s lavish lifestyle has been jailed for four years. Andrew Wetherall admitted that he had abused expenses at KPMG, the global accountancy firm, after his wife’s previous partner had tried to reduce her maintenance payments.

Southwark Crown Court heard that, desperate to buy her happiness, the director turned to fraud to supplement his six-figure salary and gave her expensive watches, top-of-the range cars and five-star holidays.

Wetherall, 49, of St Albans, Hertfordshire, stole £545,620 between September 2002 and January 2007. The father of two, who has since repaid nearly £340,000, pleaded guilty to false accounting and fraud.

The court heard that, having divorced his first wife Jayne, Wetherall married Catherine in March 2005, but he began to feel the financial strain when her former husband raised the maintenance issue.

Samantha Hatt, for the prosecution, told the court that the defendant was determined not to go through a second divorce so he started the fraud. He explained to the police that his wife was used to a lifestyle based on her former husband’s £15,000-a-month income. “He felt the pressure of her financial expectations and he didn’t want her lifestyle to suffer, so he turned to crime to ensure that it didn’t,” she said.

Judge Gregory Stone, QC, expressed incredulity at her “financial expectations”. “Did you really say £15,000 a month?” he asked counsel.

The court heard that, having started his secret life of crime, Wetherall’s dishonesty became “easier and easier”. Investigators found that he repeatedly made flight and expenses claims for non-existent trips.

“He also made multiple claims for legitimate trips and claimed personal expenditure as business expenditure, including holidays to Singapore and Thailand, a £4,000 watch, a £2,000 camera and high-value computer equipment,” the lawyer said.

Frederick Ferguson, for the defence, said his client accepted that his behaviour was “immature and inappropriate.” Wetherall, who was branded “spineless” by the judge, kept claims under £5,000 to prevent the need for authorisation.

Last year, however, a colleague became suspicious about his air travel claims and started asking questions. Wetherall, who was suspended by the accountancy firm in February last year, initially offered to repay some of the money and tried to explain his dishonesty by claiming that he had made a simple mistake.

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