An accountant in Thessaloniki has been sentenced to 7 years in prison for embezzling €450,000 from a company involved in the city’s metro construction project. The Three-Member Court of Appeal for Felonies in Thessaloniki handed down the sentence after the accused admitted her crime, attributing her actions to a gambling addiction.

The case came to light in July 2020 following a complaint by the foreign-owned company where she had been employed for several years. The scheme was uncovered when a bank employee noticed suspicious transactions from the company’s account, which was used to manage operations related to the metro project.

A forensic audit revealed that between March 2019 and May 2020, the accountant made unauthorized transfers of significant sums from the company’s account to her personal account and to an online gambling site. To conceal her actions, she falsely recorded these transfers as payments to suppliers and employees or as company expenses.

During her court appearance, the accountant expressed remorse, acknowledging her betrayal of her employer’s trust. Through her legal representation, she disclosed that she had begun attending therapy to overcome her gambling problem.

The judges found her guilty of continuous embezzlement by a trustee, without recognizing any mitigating factors, leading to her immediate imprisonment.