A SHAMED finance officer who stole more than £240,000 and hid it from his wife has been jailed for two years.

John Reid, 39, overpaid companies linked to First People Solutions Ltd in Glasgow where he worked between March 2014 and July 2017.

He then got his hands on the cash by asking the firms to send the surplus back into his own bank account.

READ MORE: Glasgow salon owner accused of running a bogus website selling games consoles

Glasgow Sheriff Court heard Reid carried out 155 transactions and pocketed a total of £244,950.

He confessed to his manager when caught and stated he had a "gambling addiction."

Reid, of East Kilbride, South Lanarkshire, pleaded guilty to embezzlement.

The first offender was told by Sheriff Paul Crozier that imprisonment was appropriate due to the gravity of the charge.

The sheriff added: "I recognise that the scheme didn't affect the company due to the fact they took the decision to have insurance.

"You were employed by the company and were in a position of trust.

"Your background report states about your addiction and I am in no doubt you suffer from an addiction.

"The report says that it doesn't excuse this type of behaviour but goes some way to explaining it."

READ MORE: Glasgow High Court: Thug choked police officer unconscious during Coatbridge rammy

The court heard Reid joined the recruitment company, based in the city's Bothwell Street, as a finance officer in March 2014.

Reid was responsible for the payroll, arranging payments and collections of overpayments from "umbrella companies."

He resigned after the company was unable to match the salary of a job he was offered elsewhere.

But, an audit in August 2017 uncovered "discrepancies within the payroll".

Prosecutor Sarah Latta said: "Reid was in control of the company accounts and was making payments to various payroll firms that his employer dealt with.

"He made legitimate payments to these companies, in various amounts, to payroll firms.

"Reid deliberately overpaid the companies between several hundred and thousands of pounds.

"He then contacted them by email or telephone to state there was an error and that he had overpaid.

"Reid asked them to refund the amount back into the company account which was, in fact, his own personal account."

The director of First People Solutions traced Reid to his new employment at another payroll firm, SD Worx.

Miss Latta said: "He freely stated that he had a gambling addiction and that he had embezzled the money to fund this.

"Reid printed out his last three years banking statement and there were 155 transactions totalling £244,950."

There was no initial police involvement as Reid made attempts to contact his father John Reid Snr to help repay the debt.

No arrangement could be met and the dad-of-one was arrested.

Gerard Brown, defending, said: "He has a long-standing gambling problem and took control of his life and relationships.

"This has also left him living in terrible conditions and being at a low ebb.

"It came as a shock to his present partner who didn't know anything about this until the day of the plea.

"The money he took didn't benefit him as it all went to the gambling companies."