Alison Ramsay stole from Shared Earth on parole from life sentence

Alison Ramsay, 58,  worked at the Fair Trade and ethical products specialist shop Shared Earth for six years, rising to be shop manager, said Kimari Storey.

For much of that time, she had her hand in the till and was forging bank counterfoils to hide her thefts. A counterfoil is the part that is torn off and kept as a record by the person issuing it.

“She thought she would get caught, but she never did. It became easier to steal so she continued,” said Ms Storey.

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Eventually, another member of staff spotted “irregularities” in the shop’s financial procedures, an internal investigation revealed Ramsay’s crimes, and police were called.

York magistrates heard that when she was working at the shop, Ramsay was on prison parole, having been released partway through a life sentence imposed for murder.

Following her arrest for theft, the Parole Board recalled her to prison and she has been behind bars ever since.

She attended court via a video link from Sytal Women’s Prison in Cheshire and pleaded guilty to theft by employee of £17,000 between January 19, 2019 and October 26, 2022.

Specialist shop Shared Earth

Ms Storey told magistrates Ramsay had breached the trust of her employer. National sentencing guidelines stated that her offence was so serious it should receive a sentence of between one and three years’ imprisonment.

Magistrates decided their maximum sentence of six months was insufficient and committed her for sentence to York Crown Court by a judge.  Ramsay remains behind bars. 

Ms Storey said Ramsay worked at the shop in MinsterGate, central York, for six years.

In October 2022, another member of staff alerted its managing director to “irregularities” with its finances. They included forged counterfoils and cash discrepancies.

Ramsay’s duties included cashing up, banking cash takings and recording totals of sales via cash or card on a spreadsheet.

When challenged, she admitted she was responsible for the “irregularities” and police were informed.

She told officers that she had been stealing money from the business for four of the six years she had working at Shared Earth.

She stole between £30 and £100 a time and believed in total she had taken about £17,000.

She had forged counterfoils and entered incorrect totals in the accounting spreadsheet to hide her thefts.

She told officers she had initially intended to repay the money, but then decided she wouldn’t “unless she got caught”.  She had spent the money on paying bills. 

For Ramsay, Vicky Balenski said she had been in custody since being recalled following the discovery of the theft.

She asked for probation officers to prepare a report on Ramsay’s personal circumstances at the time of the offence.