AN Oldbury woman who stole more than £165k from the solicitors firm where she worked as head cashier because she was "desperate" for money has been jailed for 14 months.

Pauline Sutcliffe gave herself up to police the day Stables and Co, which had offices in Halesowen, Stourbridge and Rowley Regis, went into liquidation.

Joanne Barker prosecuting said the 58-year-old’s thefts over a ten year period averaged from £200 a week to £1k.

Miss Barker said Sutcliffe, of Wolverhampton Road, stole a total of £165,745 from the firm between April 2001 and December 2010.

The firm went into liquidation in May 2012, the partners were declared bankrupt and three solicitors lost their licences to practice, she told Wolverhampton Crown Court.

Sutcliffe went to Smethwick Police Station where she told officers she had been stealing because she was desperate for money.

When interviewed she said she only stopped stealing when she realised the firm was in trouble having made out false ledgers as she was "juggling the books."

Sutcliffe had been responsible for handling the accounts of clients and instead of banking she had put money into her pocket using her knowledge of the bookkeeping system to "cover her tracks."

Sutcliffe told police her husband had been out of work for some time and money was tight, said Miss Barker who concluded, "If she had not gone into the police station the firm would have known nothing about it."

Miss Alison Scott-Jones defending Sutcliffe said: "She was not stealing because of excessive greed, there was no yacht, no large car, no home improvements and no luxurious living.

"The money was used for everyday needs because of the circumstances the family found itself in."

Judge John Warner told Sutcliffe, who pleaded guilty to theft, it was a gross breach of trust that had gone on for over nine years and involved a significant amount of money.

He said: "Everybody trusted you and relied on you to do your job and not to steal money from them."