A cheating agency director stole more than £128,000 from an estate agency she ran with business partners, including her husband.
Minshull Street Crown Court in Manchester heard that Joanne Barker, 46, stole rental payments earmarked for landlords after she started a secret affair with her personal trainer, Andrew Taylor, despite being married to and working with her husband Paul Barker.
The Daily Mail reports that throughout the course of 2014 to 2018, the mother-of-one also went behind the backs of Ian and Jo-Anne Tweedley, the couple’s best friends and fellow directors of the agency Barton Kendall, based in Rochdale, Greater Manchester.
Barker was finally exposed as a thief when several landlords, who had assigned the agency to collect money from tenants, complained about not receiving their income.
Investigations later revealed how Barker diverted money from the firm’s client account into her own personal bank account – which she used to make rental payments to a fictitious landlord and pay for a £3,640 central heating system at her £400,000 marital home, Manchester’s Minshull Street Crown Court heard.
She also used her lover’s bank account to deposit £8,586 worth of stolen cash and allowed him to live rent-free for six months in one of the firm’s properties.
Joanne Barker was sentenced to two years jail suspended for two years after claiming she was now living off state benefits in a flat in Salford and was needed to care for her elderly mother.
It is believed she has now split up with 50-year-old Paul Barker. The court heard the Tweedleys had been able to recompense all the landlords and other victims affected via their insurers.
The thefts occurred shortly after the Tweedleys, who purchased an equal stake in Barton Kendall in 2008, joined the Barkers as equal shareholders of the firm in 2015. Joanne Barker had initially been the lettings agency manageress at the Rochdale branch whilst her husband was a manager at Middleton.
In a statement, Paul Tweedley, 57, said: “Jo and I worked tirelessly to build up and maintain the business in really difficult times and we became one of the leading lettings agencies in the area with a longstanding reputation.
“I thought life was rosy, I thought we were financially secure albeit not rich, the mortgage was nearly paid off and I was gearing up to retire at 60. When we took on Joanne, she became a trusted family friend and I felt assured she would run the business in my absence.
“But all that came crashing down when I found out she was siphoning off clients’ money from the business and stealing all the tenants deposits. That day was the worst of my life. I was in the office at 3am as I couldn’t sleep and my heart sunk as I realised my business was in tatters.
“That same morning my sister rang me to say my nephew had been involved a in tragic accident and lost his life. I was numb, I hit rock bottom and we were truly at a horrendous point in our lives.
“What followed was two years of stress, panic and exhaustion to the point of nearly having a breakdown. I was determined to save the business but with such limited funds I was very concerned we might have to fold the company as I didn’t see a way out.
“I realised this would have an impact on our staff who had been conned and our many landlords who have been our clients for many years. I felt humiliated and embarrassed. The thought of ending of my life did not occur to me but I was as low and desperate as I have ever been.
“Jo and I ploughed all our savings into the business. I sold my beloved car to pay off the landlords and obtained a £50,000 business loan to pay off contractors. It was almost catastrophic.
“We lost some big landlords, over 50 managed properties, over £50,000 a year. Our insurance premiums went up from £1,600 a year to £20,000. Our standing as one of the leading estate agents in the town has dropped and our reputation has been severely tarnished.”
I will never tire of preaching and teaching ‘Separation of duties!’ the person who receives the rent doesn’t bank it, the person who banks it doesn’t reconcile it. When one person controls and does everything there are no checks on what is going on.
You must be logged in to like or dislike this comments.
Click to login
Don't have an account? Click here to register
You do love your endless preaching.
A suspended sentence after a calculated theft and so many lives affected. Lawless Britain.
You must be logged in to like or dislike this comments.
Click to login
Don't have an account? Click here to register
If she were RICS she could borrow the cash off relatives , repay the monies owed and receive a fine less than a chap who had falsified his CPD hours. (documented in RICS disciplinary hearings)
FWIW. my endless preaching means £30b annually gets safely from were it’s owed to where its due
You must be logged in to like or dislike this comments.
Click to login
Don't have an account? Click here to register
No one cares about your hero stories Bob, they are so desperately boring.
Thefts of clients’ money, these days, are few and far between. We agents are not all lazy and ignorant, despite your ravings which suggest otherwise. You are beginning to sound very out of touch.
The point is, the thief should have been given a custodial sentence of 3 to 5 years.
You must be logged in to like or dislike this comments.
Click to login
Don't have an account? Click here to register
Iam not sure how she got away with that. Landlords are normally crying if rent isn’t in account within hours.
Also , a house rented out for free to her lover? I’d know pretty quickly if one of my houses wasn’t getting rent.
You must be logged in to like or dislike this comments.
Click to login
Don't have an account? Click here to register
I haven’t ever said or intimated agents are are lazy or ignorant. I’ve reinforced the importance of best practice so another agent boss doesn’t end up carrying the can for a service or software that doesn’t work or a staff member who can’t avoid the temptation of the cash they’re trusted with.
It might be boring to you but when you’ve spoken to a widow of an agent boss who was the victim of all that’s wrong in the industry you’ll know why I will keep banging on despite snidey personal attacks and thumbs downs.
You must be logged in to like or dislike this comments.
Click to login
Don't have an account? Click here to register
Yes wherre is the incentuve to work hard
Will be worse when Labout get in though
You must be logged in to like or dislike this comments.
Click to login
Don't have an account? Click here to register
Not a part of the business I know-but surely basic account .
Surely only take cards/standing orders for in payments.
For payments out I presume all software produces a csv file, The business manager/owner sorts by payee then any unusual payments should pop up. Unless the manager/owner gets lazy.
You must be logged in to like or dislike this comments.
Click to login
Don't have an account? Click here to register
Agree 100%.
You must be logged in to like or dislike this comments.
Click to login
Don't have an account? Click here to register
I can’t say I agree except for in the case of employees having any access to bank accounts. Even outsourcing has caused problems for some. I would never trust anyone else with the rents coming into my business and I sleep well at night knowing that my landlords finances are protected by me and me alone. That said we no longer accept cash which in itself can encourage money laundering and we use a decent lettings system.
You must be logged in to like or dislike this comments.
Click to login
Don't have an account? Click here to register
That surely makes sense Robert (your comment #1)
You must be logged in to like or dislike this comments.
Click to login
Don't have an account? Click here to register
When we trained a single owner manager we’d still recommended separation of duties to make sure tiredness or simple error didn’t inadvertently catch them out
You must be logged in to like or dislike this comments.
Click to login
Don't have an account? Click here to register
That certainly sounds like something you would expect an estate agent to do.
You must be logged in to like or dislike this comments.
Click to login
Don't have an account? Click here to register
As much as I hate to admit it, this story doesn’t come as much of a surprise does it…..
You must be logged in to like or dislike this comments.
Click to login
Don't have an account? Click here to register
Awful to have your trust betrayed like that, however can I just say, you should be proud of yourselves for standing up and dealing with the whole sorry mess, I’m sure your future will be brighter.
You must be logged in to like or dislike this comments.
Click to login
Don't have an account? Click here to register
Paul’s statement is heartbreakingly honest and must have taken balls to write. He is as much a victim as anyone. Respect to him and the business. Good luck for the future.
You must be logged in to like or dislike this comments.
Click to login
Don't have an account? Click here to register
You have to be an absolute moron to think that you could get away with this in the first place!!!
Hilarious – what an absolute idiot! Greedy ***
You must be logged in to like or dislike this comments.
Click to login
Don't have an account? Click here to register