Former Market Harborough travel boss left thousands without holidays

Tann pleaded guilty to fraud by false representation, false accounting and perverting the course of justice

A former travel firm boss who duped the company out of nearly £700,000 has been jailed.

Jamie Tann was finance director at Diamond Shortbreak Holidays, in Market Harborough, Leicestershire, before it was declared bankrupt in 2018.

The 38-year-old was sacked when £25,000 went missing, but an investigation later revealed the extent of his crime.

At Leicester Crown Court on Friday, Tann was sentenced to three years and four months in prison.

Leicestershire Police said Tann's actions put the company into administration, resulting in 10,000 holidaymakers losing their bookings.

A "significant number of people" also lost their jobs, the force added.

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Tann, of Savernake Drive, Corby, began paying money from company accounts to accounts controlled by him two years after joining in June 2013.

He was sacked in 2017 after a £25,000 payment failed to reach a supplier.

The holiday company then went into administration and was declared bankrupt.

Police said 10,000 holidaymakers lost their bookings when Diamond Shortbreak Holidays was declared bankrupt

The Insolvency Service investigated the cause of the company's failure and found Tann had misappropriated about £700,000 of company funds.

Tann was arrested and in October 2019, pleaded guilty to four counts of fraud by false representation, three counts of false accounting and perverting the course of justice.

Det Con Aaron Horn said: "Tann held a position of responsibility at Diamond and was entrusted to protect the company's interests.

"Tann abused this trust when he caused money to be taken from the company accounts, leaving the company with no chance to recover from the losses suffered."