Two former Asda employees who swindled £3000 worth of goods and cash from the Alloa superstore have been ordered to pay it back.

As reported in the Advertiser previously, John Flanigan (67) and Christine Hercus (42) pleaded guilty to forming a fraudulent scheme to obtain items and money by falsely recording or failing to record transactions at checkouts.

They admitted acting together and with others between 30 October 2012 and 23 November 2012.

As checkout assistants they failed to scan goods presented for purchase and thereafter allowed those goods to be removed from the store without being paid for.

As a customer they presented a quantity of goods for purchase and paid for a lower value and number, and thereafter removed the items from the store.

Flanigan, of Clackmannan’s Devonway, additionally admitted obtaining a refund for goods previously acquired by fraud.

Whilst Flanigan confessed to fleecing £3000 worth of goods, Hercus, of Alloa’s Bowhouse Gardens, admitted that she benefited to the amount of £1184.22 from the total £3000 stolen.

Fiscal depute Susannah Hutchison told Alloa Sheriff Court last month that on 23 November 2012 the investigations manager at the Alloa store received an anonymous call reporting that items were being taken from the supermarket without being paid for and that members of staff working at the tills were skip-scanning by passing goods above the scanner. Flanigan and Hercus were identified as the employees involved.

An initial investigation unearthed that Flanigan and Hercus had used their debit cards at each other’s till on various occasions.

CCTV footage was checked and Flanigan was recorded serving Hercus on 30 October 2012 and seen to pass an electrical item over the scanner. Hercus left the store with a trolley full of goods, but paid only £2.85.

Flanigan served Hercus a number of times throughout November 2012 and on each occasion was caught skip-scanning. Hercus left the store with trolley after trolley packed with items, but only ever paid 50p, 98p, £1, £14.65 and £45.44.

Flanigan was also recorded bypassing the scanner for unknown members of the public. During November 2012 various shoppers left Asda with trolleys full of goods, but only handed over £1, £1.28, £2.68, £3.04, £7.09 and £7.79. During one transaction Flanigan charged 58p for a quantity of alcohol – which included spirits and a box of beer – and allowed a customer to walk out with two bags of goods for only £1.86.

The duo were detained by police in February 2013 and initially denied any wrongdoing.

Flanigan told officers that if he had skip-scanned items it was through human error and he was being framed along with Hercus.

Hercus claimed any mistake was unintentional. When she was questioned as to why one of her bills was only £2.85 despite buying an electrical item, she couldn’t explain it and instead insisted she hadn’t noticed because it was late and she’d just finished a five-hour shift.

She also couldn’t answer as to why she only paid 98p for a trolley full of goods and suggested she could have miss-scanned when undercharging Flanigan £23.76 for various items despite one jumper costing £25 alone.

Returning to court on Thursday (11 September) for sentencing, defence counsel Jim Savage claimed Flanigan was in a position to make restitution.

Mr Savage stated that the fraud took place over a month and started out as a “favour” and just “grew and grew”.

Flanigan, a first-time offender, was said to have known it was wrong and will “never get involved in something like this again”.

Hercus, who had also never been in trouble with the law before, was said to be embarrassed about the incident.

Her defence agent claimed she was a low-risk re-offender, apologised for her actions and was willing to make compensation at a “modest rate”.

Sheriff Derek O’Carroll stated that the crime was one of dishonesty and breached the trust of their employer.

He told Flanigan, “It’s sad that you find yourself here today.” Sheriff O’Carroll sentenced each of the pair to a Community Payback Order with 210 hours of unpaid work to be completed within six months.

Flanigan was then ordered to pay £1816 compensation to Asda, while Hercus was instructed to cough up the remaining £1184 stolen from the store.