Leeds hotel worker swindled £85,000 of M&S and Amazon vouchers to fuel gambling and cocaine habits
He sold the gift cards to fund cocaine and gambling addiction
A hotel worker scammed more than £85,000 worth of vouchers from his employers which were used as incentives to attract new customers.
Joseph Postle then sold them as he looked to fund his spiralling cocaine habit and addiction to online gambling.
The 27-year-old admitted a charge of fraud by false representation at Leeds Crown Court this week, but was spared immediate custody.
Prosecutor Beth Richardson said Postle had been employed by The Village Hotel and Leisure Club in Leeds. The chain hotel runs two locally, in Headingley and Morley.
In 2024 members of the hotel’s leisure club were given an incentive to recommend friends to join, and in return they would receive gift vouchers that could be spent on Amazon, M&S or Deliveroo.
The new members would also receive a voucher if they signed up.
Between January and October 2024, Postle created false email addresses and bogus referrals from members and potential new members.
He included his own mobile number on both the supposed members and new members, so would receive both vouchers.
Over the nine-month period, he received 4,301 vouchers, worth a total of £85,930.
Postle was only caught after bosses found the number of vouchers dispatched far outnumbered the number of genuine referrals. They then found his number attached.
He was brought in for a meeting where he admitted his conduct and said he was struggling with a gambling addiction that was growing worse.
He was arrested in March last year and had his phone seized. Hundreds of messages were found on the device related to Postle selling the vouchers for cash.
Postle, of Hall Park Mount, Horsforth, underwent two police interviews but refused to answer questions in either.
Mitigating, Giles Grant said Postle had no previous convictions and said his offending lacked sophistication, given that he attached his own phone number to the bogus voucher claims.
The court heard that his cocaine use was escalating and he was spending £500 a week, putting himself in debt, and was compounded by his gambling on websites.
He is now receiving help from the the counselling service, Forward Leeds, and had landed a new job as a chef at a Leeds golf club, working six days a week.
The judge, Recorder David Gordon, acknowledged that Postle had “taken steps” to address the “clear” root of his offending.
He gave him a 24-month sentence, suspended for 24 months, and ordered to complete 250 hours of unpaid work and 10 rehabilitation days with probation.
He told him: “This is a golden opportunity. I do not want to see you here again.”