Post worker rumbled in cash scam

DISGRACED postal worker Helen Blizzard narrowly escaped a prison sentence after stealing cash and gift tokens from post in Ipswich.

Blizzard was rumbled after Consignia mounted a surveillance operation following two complaints from customers about missing cash.

She admitted stealing £400 and gift tokens worth £65 from post in Ipswich between January 1 and May 24 and stealing five postal packets containing £60 belonging to Consignia on May 27.

The former postwoman worked in Ipswich dealing with postal packages that didn't have the correct stamp value on it, prosecutor Naomi Turner told the court.

Mitigating, Tanya Thomas, said she left a trail by taking the money out of the postal packages, resealing and putting them back into the postal system after paying the excess stamp value on it

When confronted Blizzard, of The Street, Earl Soham, made full admissions.

The court heard the former postwoman – who now works in a Suffolk pub – was a hard worker who had been under "exceptional degrees of stress" after she had been harassed at work.

Magistrates were told Blizzard is taking anti-depressants and had received counselling for stress and depression. "She is a lady who has very genuine remorse," said Miss Thomas.

Blizzard, who appeared tearful throughout the court hearing, was sentenced to a 200 hour community punishment order for each offence to run concurrently.

Bench chairman, Matthew March, ordered the 24-year-old to carry out 200 hours unpaid work in the community.

He told her: "We have considered very carefully sending you to prison."

But magistrates decided against it for reasons which included her recent mental state and that she had been harassed by another worker.

Magistrates also ordered her to pay £5 compensation to Consignia and £200 costs.