Charity fraudster who stole over £200,000 to fund his cocaine habit is jailed

A CHARITY worker has been jailed for stealing hundreds of thousands of pounds from relationship counselling service Relate.

charity, kristian brittain, finance, money, cocaine, drugs, stole, theif, relate cymru, wales, crimeFraudster Brittain enjoyed a lavish lifestyle thanks to the money that he stole[POLICE HANDOUT/GETTY]

Kristian Brittain, who was finance officer at Relate Cymru, used the money to fund his cocaine habit and lavish lifestyle.

He began stealing cash in 2010 to pay his rent.

But over the next five months he became greedy and used it to buy drugs, two cars and to pay for his civil partnership ceremony.

Brittain, 31, of Gorseinon, Swansea, was first hired by the charity on a temporary basis in December 2009 but was given a permanent job three months later.

Swansea Crown Court heard the fraudster had stolen the £221,340 by making duplicate payments into his own bank account.

By the time he had left Relate Cymru for a new job at the Carmarthenshire Heritage and Regeneration Trust, Brittain had made 90 dodgy transactions.

It was only after his replacement at Relate Cymru discovered irregularities in the charity’s accounts that the crime was traced back to him.

In terms of the offence he accepts this was a gross breach of trust

Chris James

When he was arrested, Brittain admitted theft and possession of the drugs which were found in his home by police.

On Thursday, Judge Paul Thomas jailed Brittain for 30 months after he admitted theft and possessing cocaine and a Class C drug.

The judge said delays in the case meant Brittain was being sentenced years after he had accepted committing the offences.

Chris James, defending, admitted Brittain had a drug addiction and said his life had “spiralled out of control”.

He said Brittain had a different side and was a carer for his partner and grandmother.

“In terms of the offence he accepts this was a gross breach of trust,” he said.

“He doesn’t try to minimise or step away from what he has done, he takes full responsibility.”

According to police, Brittain failed to answer bail in May 2011, prompting a manhunt.

He was finally charged after his mugshot was circulated on the police website, on Facebook and on Twitter in March this year.

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