A devious estates manager for a Dover-based property company siphoned more than £125,000 claiming she was paying the plumber.

But her boss pulled the plug on Denise Jones’ three year scam – and now she has gone to jail for four years.

Jones, 53, of Park Road, Ramsgate was convicted of the fraud after a trial at Canterbury Crown Court in which she tried to blame boss William Sedgwick.

The jury heard how she worked for Sedgwick Properties based in Granville Street – which handled 62 properties.

Prosecutor Claire Cooper said that when Mr Sedgwick became unwell in late 2012, Jones, who had worked for the company for a decade, was left in charge.

“That meant she was left to operate the company’s books, without much supervision as he had no reason at that time not to trust her; plus he had his health to think about," she added.

In 2016, Mr Sedgwick became concerned about the level of payments to plumbers which was in excess of £50,000.

Ms Cooper said accountants launched a forensic investigation and discovered money had been paid into three accounts, entitled “Windows”, “HHands” and “Wages”.

After Jones was arrested she admitted making the payments but claimed she did it on the “express instruction” of Mr Sedgwick but the jury rejected her claim and found her guilty.

The judge, Recorder Gareth Branston told her: “You were responsible for almost all administrative and account matters with access to finances and bank accounts.

“You were paid a monthly wage but at some point decided that was not enough because you transferred money into your own account and you did this on many occasions, stealing just over £125,000 from the business.”

The court heard that after the discovery of the missing cash, civil proceedings were taken against Jones which resulted in a charging order - which secures a debt with a creditor against property - being made on her home.

Recorder Branston added: “That was an admission of guilt - despite your claims that you didn’t know what a charging order was, given your background I find that hard to believe.

“You claimed that there was an elaborate scheme committed at the behest of Mr Sedgwick and even cast aspersions on his accountant but the jury has seen through you."

A charging order means that if the owner sells or remortgages the home before the debt is cleared the charging order has to be paid from the proceeds. A creditor can only get a charging order if they already have a County Court judgment against the home owner.