A FOUNDING company director has been jailed for six months by Worcester Crown Court for stealing £8,676 over an 18-month period.

Colin Shuck, who was the joint owner of Airducts Design Ltd, of Hampton Lovett, near Droitwich Spa, has since resigned from the firm and handed over all his shares.

Shuck, aged 57, of The Bourne, Dormston, Inkberrow, who pleaded guilty to theft, forgery and false accounting, was told by Judge Michael Mott: "It was a considerable breach of trust by someone in a position to know better."

Shuck and Keith Davies set up the company 22 years ago to specialise in dust and fume extraction units, said Peter Haynes, prosecuting. Mr Davies was the draughtsman while Shuck was the company secretary responsible for paying the wages.

In 2000, Mr Davies and his wife Sharon noticed their salaries and expenses were arriving later and later. One month they were not paid at all.

Mrs Davies was concerned and obtained copies of cheques from the bank and compared the figures with entries in the company's day book.

The book suggested that Mr Davies had been paid his salary but the cheques revealed that the money had been made payable to the defendant, said Mr Haynes.

Further analysis showed regular pilfering of cash which had been covered up by forgery and bogus receipts.

Confronted about the fraud, Shuck said: "You can call it that but don't send me to jail." He offered to repay the money.

His resignation was accepted by Mr Davies, whose trust in a friend of 20 years had been destroyed, said Mr Haynes. In 2001, the company was in a poor state with debts of £223,000.

Mr and Mrs Davies resolved to keep it going, re-mortgaging their own property and making themselves personally responsible for any shortfall and debts.

Shuck first told police he had done nothing wrong. He accepted petty cash entries were bogus but said he did this to balance the books. He also claimed some forgeries were to conceal 'sweeteners' paid to other firms, which was a lie, said Mr Haynes.

Shuck, a hard-working man of good character, had walked out with nothing from the company he had started and promoted for 20 years, said his counsel, Joe Kieran.

Once he had handed over his shares to Mr Davies in 2001 and forsaken his financial interest in the company, he thought the matter had ended. And it was a shock when police began a financial investigation three years later. After Shuck's resignation, Mr and Mrs Davies enlisted the help of the local Chamber of Commerce to bring in a troubleshooter to diagnose problems. In the next year of trading, the company's profit exceeded £80,000.

Mr Kieran said it was ironic that the wronged partner had become a beneficiary while Shuck had lost more than he had gained.