THE FORMER business development manager at Coventry’s Belgrade Theatre had admitted stealing more than £5,000 while working there.
Graham Aylott, of Forfield Road, Coundon, pleaded guilty at Warwick Crown Court to theft between February 2013 and December last year.
Adjourning his case for for a pre-sentence report to be prepared, and granting bail, Judge Stephen Eyre QC warned the 40-year-old that ‘all options’ of sentencing would be open.
The court heard Aylott, who had no previous convictions, abused his position of trust at the Belgrade Theatre in order to steal up to £5,109 from the theatre.
In his role as business development manager, he was responsible for accepting bookings by email from individuals and companies for tickets to productions at the theatre.
But in sending out tickets, he provided customers with his own bank account details – telling them it was an account connected to the Belgrade.
In total, 55 transactions were identified.
Matthew Barnes, prosecuting said: “It came to light through an enquiry being made by a customer about tickets which, so far as they were concerned, they had bought, and the enquiry went to someone else – and the balloon went up.”
As a theatre employee, Aylott was entitled to some form of discount for tickets.
But when he was questioned by theatre managers in December, he said that sometimes he would sell those tickets at discounted prices to customers.
Mr Barnes added: “When he was taxed about these matters by the theatre, he made admissions, and it appears the theatre told him the police would not be involved.”
But officers were involved, and as of June when her was charged, Aylott had repaid £798 to the Belgrade.
When he was interviewed Aylott admitted the theft, and explained he was struggling financially at the time – a gambling problem leading to him run up gambling debts.
On his online Linkedin profile Aylott has claimed he ‘decided to leave my current role at the theatre at Christmas 2015’ because he wanted a new challenge.
