Former breed society director jailed for stealing £240,000

Former Holstein UK executive director Greg Watson has been sentenced to two years in prison after stealing £240,000 from the organisation.

Mr Watson was found guilty at a court hearing last Friday (15 July).

Holstein UK said the verdict was in line with the evidence that police and Crown Prosecution Service were relying on and was the final decision of the judge in this case.

See also: UK Dairy Day secured until 2020

Mr Watson was given a two-year prison sentence and was taken from the court straight to jail. He was ordered to pay the money to Holstein UK immediately.

Mr Watson must also pay for the costs of the court hearings and prosecution time.

Suspicions that money had gone missing were confirmed after Holstein UK instructed a business consultant to carry out a full internal business review in late 2013.

The review uncovered inconsistencies in the society’s finances.

A further internal investigation suggested this could be due to inappropriate handling of charitable money by Mr Watson, who was Holstein UK’s former head of finance.

An operational audit suggested money was unaccounted for over a number of years.

Police were called and a subsequent criminal investigation resulted in the matter being passed to the Crown Prosecution Service, which decided there was enough evidence to secure a conviction.

Mr Watson, who had worked for Holstein UK for 29 years, parted company from the breed society in March 2014 after eight months on gardening leave.

Holstein UK chief executive Richard Jones said he believed the conviction was a “good outcome” for Holstein UK.

“We get most of the stolen money back, we see Greg Watson face punishment for his crime and most importantly, it means we can close this chapter of Holstein UK’s history and move forward.”