An IT worker who stole laptops from his employers before selling them online committed a ‘gross breach of trust’.

James Bardsley was hauled before a judge after his bosses discovered he had been selling tens of thousands of pounds worth of their laptops online. The ‘serial, organised’ thefts committed by Bardsley at Oliver James Associates in the city centre were discovered ‘almost by chance’, Manchester Crown Court heard.

After being arrested, the father-of-three confessed and told police that he was ‘under significant financial pressure’. He avoided being sent to jail after a judge heard of his genuine remorse.

Prosecuting, Duncan Wilcock said that Bardsley, 38, worked for the recruitment consultancy business in Spinningfields for about two years. He was employed in the company’s

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