Nationwide cashier to repay £12k after stealing from customers

A building society cashier who stole thousands of pounds from customers to pay for “lavish” holidays has been ordered to repay more than £12,000.

Kelly Kershaw, 54, took at least £8,605 from vulnerable and elderly customers at Nationwide in Caernarfon, Gwynedd, even forging the signature of a man with learning disabilities.

Kershaw admitted five counts of fraud after colleagues spotted Facebook posts of her on safari in Africa, and on trips to Paris, Tuscany and Dubai.

She was jailed for 16 years in May but returned to Caernarfon Crown Court for a Proceeds of Crime Act, external hearing, where the court heard she benefited £13,333.26 from her crimes – and had £12,630 in assets.

Judge Nicola Jones ordered Kershaw to repay the sum within three months or face a further five months in prison.

The mother-of-two posted pictures of skiing trips, safaris and romantic European getaways on her Facebook page and boasted she was “living and loving life one adventure at a time.”

Kershaw’s victims included an 85-year-old man who had lost some “cognitive abilities” after suffering a stroke – and she stole £6,300 from him.

On one occasion, he came to the branch asking to withdraw £200, but Kershaw logged the withdrawal as £500 and pocketed £300 herself.

Another victim was a 49-year-old man with learning difficulties who lost £1,400 to Kershaw – he had his bank card kept in the branch as he was a previous victim of fraud.