Finance boss endangered newspaper with £75k fraud
GoogleA finance boss who endangered a local newspaper with a £75,000 fraud has been given a suspended sentence.
David Vasey, 63, plundered the "perilous" accounts of the Teesdale Mercury in his roles as finance and managing director, Durham Crown Court heard.
The weekly paper, which was founded in 1854 and had been family owned for generations, had to be sold and its Barnard Castle head office disposed of, in part because of Vasey's actions, the court heard.
Vasey, who has repaid the money and since retired to France, was jailed for two years suspended for 18 months.
Vasey was employed by the paper from 2012 to 2016, first as finance director and then, from 2015, also as managing director.
In a statement read to the court, the paper's previous owner Carolyn Vane said it was an "extremely challenging time" for newspapers and Vasey was "affable and helpful".
"No one had a better understanding of the perilous state of our finances than David Vasey", Vane said, adding it was subsequently revealed he had "gone to lengths" to ensure no-one knew what he was doing.
'Put jobs at risk'
After he left, a number of irregularities were discovered prompting a probe, the court heard.
It was revealed Vasey had been carrying out six different types of fraud to steal thousands of pounds, with the exact amount disputed between various parties but finally agreed to be £75,000.
They included making unauthorised overpayments of his salary to himself, misusing petty cash, overpaying his expenses, paying himself for meetings that never took place and using the company credit card for personal purchases, the court heard.
He would conceal his actions by altering the company's financial records and online banking statements, the court heard.
"The high value of this crime endangered the viability of the Teesdale Mercury and put at risk the livelihoods of our employees," Vane said.
He put everyone's jobs at "jeopardy", Vane said, adding he "gave no thought" to his colleagues or the "historic newspaper", which her family had been "passionate to preserve".
'Abused trust'
Judge Nathan Adams said Vasey had been "respected" and "hard-working" while giving the appearance he was doing his best to continue the existence of the paper.
He said Vasey told a probation officer he stole the money as he felt he "deserved" it as he had not been given a pay rise for taking on extra responsibility.
The judge said he abused the trust and power given to him and the paper only survived through the sale of its premises in Barnard Castle Market Place and eventual sale of the whole company.
While Vasey had repaid the money, that "in no way downplayed" the impact the thefts had had on the company at the time, the judge said.
The court heard Vasey was first arrested in 2017 but the case did not reach court until 2025, with the delay being "unjustified".
Because of the length of time it took to resolve, health issues with both Vasey and his wife and as probation services had deemed him to pose no further risk of offending, the judge suspended Vasey's prison term.
Adams said he would have ordered him to complete 200 hours of unpaid work but it was not suitable as Vasey had move out of the country.
