A Birmingham Parcelforce delivery driver with a gambling addiction who stole £12,500 worth of items from a depot and then sold them on online auction site eBay has been jailed for a year. Benjamin Rutter of Mallan Drive, Erdington, Birmingham, admitted 14 charges of theft and asked for a further 68 charges to be taken into consideration.
John Dove, prosecuting at Birmingham Crown Court, said that as a result of complaints from customers who had not received goods, Parcelforce had installed
CCTV in March and Rutter was recorded removing two parcels from another vehicle.
He was later quizzed but denied acting dishonestly, claiming the parcels had been mis-sorted, adding that substantial deposits made into bank accounts were the result of winning at bingo. However investigators later searched his home where they found a number of electronic items. Dove said that when interviewed again, Rutter admitted stealing items, saying he had sold them on eBay after setting up an account in his girlfriend's name.
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