A qualified accountant who a judge found was “clearly a good person brought down by greed” has been jailed for two years after stealing €1.4m from KPMG.
David Craddock (42) of Dalgan Road, Shrule, Co Mayo, pleaded guilty at Galway Circuit Criminal Court
to 10 sample counts of theft which occurred on dates between 2014 and 2019 from his employer on Dock Road, Galway.
The court heard that he has no previous convictions and has not come to the attention of the authorities since this offence came to light in 2019.
Detective Garda Marvin Lee told Geri Silke BL, prosecuting, that gardai were contacted in 2019 by KPMG, stating that just over €1.4m was missing from their accounts. A criminal investigation began and 129 thefts in total were discovered.
The court heard that Craddock, a qualified accountant, had been employed by KPMG from 2013 to 2019.
In 2012, he set up a private company called “Shanbar” and between 2014 and 2019, he used fake invoices to send money into this company’s account. He would make payments for work that had not been carried out, along with altering online VAT payments, overcharging some accounts and keeping the difference.
Det Gda Lee said Craddock used the receiver accounts’ funds to build a €328,000 home in Shrule for himself and his family as well as buying cars. The court heard that Craddock left the company shortly before the offending came to light. He was interviewed by gardai on five occasions.
The court heard that Craddock’s wife has recently been diagnosed with a serious medical condition and has undergone surgery.
Det Gda Lee agreed with defence counsel, Michael Bowman SC, that once the “entire enterprise was exposed”, his client took immediate responsibility.
The garda agreed that KMPG engaged with a solicitor and was satisfied to receive €900,000 in restitution from Craddock. The detective further agreed that Craddock had sold everything he owned and his brother has helped him pay off what he owes.
Mr Bowman said his client met with KMPG in March 2019, when he “put his hands up” and co-operated fully with his former employer. He admitted his guilt when he met with gardai and brought material with him to his interviews, which he later signed over to them.
Counsel said his client previously had “outstanding standing” in his community. After these offences came to light, he immediately informed local community organisations of what he had done and resigned from all committees that he was involved in.
A booklet of documents was handed into the court, which included a letter from Craddock’s wife who described him as a “brilliant father who his children adore”.
She spoke of the devastation that has been brought on the family, which has been “hanging over us for six years”. She said her husband “has become a shadow of the man he once was. He is filled with shame and regret”.
A letter of apology from the defendant was also handed to the court, in which he deeply apologised for his actions. He outlined that he has lost the respect of his neighbours, family and possibly his children in the years to come.
Mr Bowman asked the court to take into account the extraordinary level of restitution that has been paid, the level of co-operation and the tragic personal circumstance the defendant now finds himself in.
He asked the court to consider deferring any sentence until January 2027.
Passing sentence, Judge Brian O’Callaghan said these were very serious offences and that this was a case of a “clearly good person brought down by greed”.
He said the court must assess the gravity of what was done to both the injured parties and society. He noted that Craddock was not under the influence of addiction or any third party.
Judge O’Callaghan said Craddock’s level of moral culpability was at the upper level and the offending conduct resulted in significant harm. He noted Craddock’s personal circumstances and accepted that he was an exceptionally good person before this.
The judge said the aggravating factors included the amount of money involved, the pre-planning, the greed, Craddock’s attempts to cover his tracks and the high level of deceit. The judge took into account significant mitigation including the defendant’s early guilty pleas, his admissions, co-operation and commitment to making restitution.
The judge said he was satisfied that Craddock was wholly remorseful and that he has lost his reputation in the community as well as his profession.
However, he said the custodial threshold had been reached and set a headline sentence of six and a half years. Taking mitigating factors into account, he reduced this to three and a half years and suspended the final eighteen months on a number of conditions.
Following an application from Mr Bowman, the judge deferred the sentence until October 6.
Funded by the Courts Reporting Scheme