A WOMAN who was introduced to drugs by her father, starting a habit that led her to defraud her former employer of more than $7000, has received a suspended jail sentence in Orange Local Court.
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Carissa Michal Crane, 25, pleaded guilty to 127 counts of dishonestly obtaining financial advantage by deception, committed between December 22, 2013 and January 7, 2014 and totalling $7174.48.
Crane was an employee at Coles Express in Summer Street at the time. According to police facts, she put fuel discounts on sales once the customer left the store and pocketed the difference.
Her solicitor, Michael Madden, told the court yesterday the crimes were committed in full view of CCTV surveillance.
“There was nothing elaborate about it, it was just a matter of when,” he said.
“Her mother and partner are in court supporting her. Previously that would not have been the case.”
Mr Madden said Crane had become a different person after her father died in 2014.
“She used to take drugs with her father from a young age. He had a cardiac arrest and she blames herself for that,” he said.
“With no intervention, she just got herself off [drugs]. She decided the way she was going in life was going to go one way and she went cold turkey with the help of her family and her partner and she got working.”
According to the pre-sentence report, Crane took cannabis, amphetamines and methamphetamines from the age of 17 before becoming addicted to ice in 2013.
Mr Madden also pointed to the report, which listed her as employed as an apprentice cook at a Bathurst-based hospitality business, and told the court she had already saved $1600 to repay her former employer.
The full amount is expected to be repaid by February next year.
“A full-time custodial sentence will prevent that from happening,” Mr Madden said.
“I would say she’s done a lot to right that wrong and give confidence to the community it won’t happen again.”
Magistrate Terry Lucas said Crane had in effect been given a $7000 loan.
“Your chances of getting away with this is zip,” he said.
“I’m glad to hear you’re getting off [the drugs], but you’ve got this hanging over your head.”
Mr Lucas sentenced Crane to a 12-month suspended sentence and ordered her to repay the money.
