Treasurer stole £20k from dog clubs to pay bills

A Devon woman has been given a suspended prison sentence for stealing more than £20,000 from two dog clubs she served as treasurer, using the funds to cover her daily living costs [1]. Lisa Murch, 44, of Silford near Northam, admitted to two counts of fraud by abuse of position at Truro Crown Court [1]. Between March 2023 and October 2024, she transferred £20,409 from the accounts of the Chesapeake Bay Retriever Club and the Cornwall Gun Dog Club, also keeping cash raised from raffles and events [1]. The fraud was uncovered when club officials noticed discrepancies in their accounts [1]. The case was investigated by the Devon and Cornwall Police, the territorial force responsible for the region [3]. Prosecutor Pip Harper stated Murch had repaid only £590 of the stolen amount [1]. In mitigation, defence barrister Matt Mortimer said his client, a single mother of two, was "ashamed and remorseful" [1]. "She spent it on day-to-day activities," Mortimer told the court, adding, "There was no suggestion of holidays, it was just the bare day-to-day existence for her. She was always going to get caught, it snowballed and she was never going to get away with it" [1]. The judge sentenced Murch to 15 months in prison, suspended for two years [1]. She was also ordered to pay £200 a month in compensation to the clubs for the next two years [1]. The case highlights the financial pressures in the region, where the economy has historically relied on industries like mining and agriculture [5]. Devon, a ceremonial county in South West England, has a population of over 1.2 million and includes diverse communities from coastal cities to rural areas [4].