Jail for workers in £47k fittings theft

A supervisor and an employee with Black Country bathroom giants Aqualux have been jailed for a £47,000 conspiracy to steal fittings from their own firm.

Robert Witton, aged 38, was jailed for three years for his "pivotal" role in using his position to allowing vans in and out of the firm's warehouse and drive off with stolen equipment.

Wolverhampton Crown Court heard how directors at Aqualux became concerned that stock was going missing from the warehouse, on Steelmans Road, near Ikea. Their investigations identified a white Mercedes Sprinter van registered to a Darshan Chand, who was posing as a delivery driver to take the goods away.

The van had been to the depot 35 times over a period of several months, usually when Mr Witton, of Union Street, Chuckery, whose job it was to authorise stock to be released. On the evening of January 13 last year, the van arrived at Aqualux and within eight minutes tried to leave.

When it was stopped, it was found to have been loaded with bath screens and other items with a retail value of £5,000.

The amount of stock which went missing was put at £47,000. The stolen bathroom fixtures were "on sale all over the region at very low prices", the court heard. Inderjit Sarai, aged 43, of Belgrave Walk, Reedswood, Walsall, who worked as a forklift truck driver at Aqualux, had established contact with Chand.

Sarai was yesterday jailed for 15 months after admitting conspriacy to steal. Married father-of-three Chand, aged 42, of Leveson Street, Willenhall, who posed as a delivery driver to remove the goods, was given nine months.

Judge Michael Challinor told him: "When you left the premises with the stolen goods, very quickly they went onto the market."

He told Witton, who was found guilty of conspiracy to steal: "You were significantly more culpable than the others. You were a team leader and you were the one who authorised the entry of Mr Chand. You were pivotal in this conspiracy and this sentence should make others think twice before stealing their property from employers.

"There was deception to get past security and the conspiracy lasted for a significant period of time."

A Proceeds of Crime application is now under way to claw back the gang's profits.