Anger as Peterborough fraudster ordered to pay back £2,500 of £77,000 she took from city firm

Dianne Polson was jailed for three years and four months after bringing family run firm Canopy Direct UK to its knees after siphoning thousands of pounds from its accounts.

Polson (45), of Oak Avenue, Hampton used the cash to fund her gambling addiction, even as the firm, which makes canopies and extractor fans for restaurant and hotel kitchens had to make redundancies to pay the bills, halving the workforce from 10 to five.

Today, five months after being jailed, Polson appeared back at Peterborough Crown Court, where she was ordered to pay back £2,595.66. The court was told she had benefitted from crimes by £77,138.

Francis Gaskin, prosecuting, told the court that the £2,595 would be taken from a pension Polson had, and the amount was the only assets Polson, who appeared via video link from HMP Peterborough, had.

The court was also told that should Polson ever have any other assets, the court can seize those in the future.

Financial investigators are now arranging for the money to be transferred to Canopy Direct. If the money is not paid within three months, Polson will face an extra day in prison in default, although the court heard there should be no issues transferring the cash.

Speaking after the hearing, Lisa Ellingham, who formed the company with husband John a decade ago, said the compensation was like ‘putting a plaster on a huge cut.’

She said: “By the time we receive the money, the damage has already been done to the company. It is little solace to us to get this.

“She has done so much damage that just cannot be undone or repaired overnight.

“This is like putting a plaster over a huge cut.”

Polson was described as being like a ‘right hand man’ by Lisa during the court hearing, and was a trusted colleague.

Lisa said: “The money is such a small amount compared to what was taken, but it is not just about the money. We trusted her, and we will never be able to repair that trust. It has hit us hard.”

Polson pleaded guilty to fraud before she was sentenced.