Cleaner sent £90,000 in error let ‘temptation’ get better of her and dished it out to family

A cleaner who received an unexpected £90,000 from a charity let ‘temptation’ get the better of her, a court has heard. 

Comfort Konadu, 52, failed to tell anyone when the sum was deposited into her bank account by mistake after she returned an item at a charity shop. 

 In a ‘flurry’ of transactions, she moved £57,000 into other accounts, including to her children, Manchester Crown Court heard. 

The Royal Mencap Society has lost more than £31,000, despite the bank being able to freeze and retrieve some of the money after discovering the error.

Now a Proceeds of Crime investigation will take place to see whether the charity can claw back any of its losses. A judge told mum-of-six Konadu: 

You have brought shame on yourself, and I dare say to your family.

The court heard that she had gone into the charity’s shop in Openshaw on Friday, October 11 last year to get a refund for an item she had bought. 

Days later, senior managers at the charity, which supports people with learning disabilities, were alerted to the large refund and launched an investigation