A former accounts worker at Colliers CRE deliberately created false invoices in order to steal more than £150,000 from her employer, the High Court ruled today.

Shelley Pandya, a ledger purchase supervisor at Colliers, her boyfriend Eric Jonas, associates Peter Modeste and Winston Harvey, and company Secure Property Services were found liable in the High Court today for up to £158,925.87 of falsely invoiced payments made between 2005 and 2007.

Judge Richard Seymour QC ruled in a judgement that Pandya set up two suppliers on Colliers’ accounting system, NJ Hills Roofing and Reliable Telecommunications Consultants, in order to invoice Colliers’ property management division.

Cheques were then paid to Modeste, Harvey and Securemove. A search on Companies House revealed that Jonas was the sole director of Securemove and Pandya was the companies’ secretary.

Judge Seymour QC said Pandya had set up ‘bogus businesses’ in order to process ‘fictitious invoices’ in order to issue cheques to Modeste, Harvey and Securemove.

‘The explanations offered by Miss Pandya were unconvincing,’ he said.

The judge ruled that Jonas had induced Pandya to ‘breach her contract of employment’ through the false accounting. Pandya and Jonas were found to be liable for the full £158,925.87.

Harvey, who received one cheque from the false invoicing, was found liable for £6,000. Modeste, who received eight cheques, was found liable for £39,805.23 of the total sum. Securemove, which received thirteen cheques, was found liable for £102,590.33.