Following a Thames Valley Police investigation, a man has been jailed for theft by employee in Milton Keynes.
Konrad Labinksi, 41, from Padstow Avenue in Fishermead, was sentenced to two years in prison at Aylesbury Crown Court last Thursday.
He pleaded guilty to theft by employee on 25 April this year.
On March 4 this year officers were informed of a potential employee theft at a car parts distribution centre in Milton Keynes, as they were noticing a large amount of stock that was going missing.
They had found an eBay account that they believed the goods were being sold through. Enquiries with eBay identified the name of the employee, and Labinski was arrested at his place of work on 7 March and charged the next day.
He was caught in the act of stealing more goods.
A search of his home address resulted in more than 1,000 car parts being seized and recovered. These are estimated to be of a value in the region of £1,000,000.
It is believed that the parts were stolen over a two-year period, and all of the recovered stolen goods were returned to the company.
In a police interview, Labinski refused to make any comment.
“This was a very fast moving investigation where we were able to secure key evidence to identify the suspect," said Detective Constable, PC Vince Higgins of Milton Keynes CID.
“CID at Milton Keynes worked with other departments to progress the case.
“Labinski was arrested in a way to secure further evidence and we then found a trove of stolen property at his home address. This has been the best outcome and we were able to quickly return the stolen items back to the rightful owner.
“The fact that Labinski was immediately remanded shows how serious the courts take this type of offence. He had been working for the company for over 20 years and he abused the trust that was given to him to steal from them.
“He has gone from having a well-paid job with lots of company perks, to being unemployed, losing his job and company car and being placed in prison.
“I hope this sends out the message to him and others that the consequences of this type of offence can be huge and have life-changing consequences.”
