Kirkby man stole £34,000 from Rumbles charity that supported him since he was a teenager
A Kirkby man who stole £34,000 from a charity that helps adults and children with learning difficulties betrayed the very people who supported him since he was a teenager, a court has heard.
Zenon Hos admitted banking takings from community cafes run by the Rumbles Catering Project when he was challenged over bookkeeping irregularities.
The assistant manager claimed other people had access to his kitchen cupboard where he sometimes stored cash before storming out of a meeting, said Clarkson Baptiste, prosecuting.
In total he deposited £34,326 into his own bank account, between March 2021 and August 2022, and was only able to return £3,000 without any paperwork.
Georgina Dolan, who founded the charity in 1998 with a National Lottery Grant, said Hos had been “part of the Rumbles family since he was young”.
She described him as “an amazing chef” who “developed good relationships with staff and customers,” and Rumbles had provided financial assistance to him and his siblings.
Hos took over banking duties when Mrs Dolan was injured in an accident and she hoped he would assume her role when she retired.
“It appears he had no conscience about what he had taken,” she said. “His actions caused lots of anger and sadness and has placed the charity in a difficult financial position.
“The saddest part is how let down the charity's beneficiaries feel about someone they considered a friend and mentor. I am personally disappointed. I have been let down by someone I trusted and cared for.
“He always knew if he was desperate for help how people would be there for him.”
Andrew Wesley, mitigating, said Hos, of previous good character, had a very difficult upbringing and a custodial sentence would put his adapted home at risk and impact his children.
Judge Tina Dempster told him: “It is really sad to see you here today. You have lost your name but you have lost much more than that.”
She said it was “unclear why you chose to deal with your difficulties by stealing from people who had supported you.”
Hos, aged 36, of Hawthorn Crescent, Kirkby, admitted theft by employee after initially denying the charge.
He received a 12 month sentence, suspended for two years, with 20 rehabilitation days, when he appeared at Nottingham Crown Court on Thursday.