Sold, not savored
A Scottish whisky auction manager has admitted to stealing £43,000 ($54,782) of rare bottles, not to savor the expensive liquors, but to sell them to fund his gambling debts.
stole 45 rare bottles of whisky
Andrew Grant, 44, of Bearsden, Glasgow, admitted before Perth Sheriff Court that he stole 45 rare bottles of whisky and other spirits from his employer Whisky Auctioneer Ltd between 17 August and 22 December 2021.
According to the Daily Record, Grant duped his relatives into believing he was entitled to buy the bottles, worth 100s or 1000s of pounds each, to collectors at “a huge discount” from Whisky Auctioneer.
Grant “his brother and others” then sold the stolen bottles to a variety of auction houses, including back to his own employer. Along with the others involved, court documents reveal Grant made “£24,500 ($31,531) from the scam.”
Abusing his position
Sheriff Jennifer Bain KC told the court in the Scottish city of Perth that Grant: “breached the trust” of Whisky Auctioneer by stealing premium-priced goods from them.
Sheriff Bain also pointed out how the convicted Head of Operations knew Whisky Auctioneer did not have a whisky tracking process in place, because he was the one responsible for failing to install one. In addition, Grant’s security clearance granted him access to the rare bottles’ storage area.
Fiscal depute Stephanie Paterson told the court, however, that during a stock check 45 rare bottles of whisky were missing from the inventory, and that electronic records did not match.
four people had sold all the missing bottles via different whisky auctions
Paterson said that further investigation revealed four people had sold all the missing bottles via different whisky auctions. Police Scotland then proceeded to examine bank accounts.
Paterson stated the police found 60% of any payments received were transferred to Grant.
Sheriff Bane said that Grant hatched the scam and “got family and friends involved in selling” to fund his gambling addiction. “I know you are rightly devastated and ashamed of your behaviour,” Bane told the accused.
Driven by debt
Grant’s lawyer Doug McConnell told the court the background to his client’s case of offense was underscored by “a fairly complicated and entrenched gambling addiction.”
“He is a single man who kept it to himself and had no support. He appreciates the breach of trust, and what makes it worse was that he got friends and family involved.”
McConnell added Grant has sought help for his addiction and that he attends Gamblers Anonymous on a weekly basis.
Sheriff Bain ordered Grant to complete 300-hours unpaid work, placed him under supervision for three years, and instructed him to pay £2,000 ($1,303) in compensation to Whisky Auctioneer.