Cosmetic clinic manager stole nearly £50,000 to pay for treatments ‘to fit in with colleagues’
A cosmetic clinic manager stole nearly £50,000 to pay for treatments so she could fit in with her “beautiful” work colleagues, a court heard.
Rebecca Le-Clercq spent the money on “shallow and materialistic things” she flaunted on social media to make herself look good, the court heard.
She had beauty work worth thousands of pounds, such as anti-wrinkle injections, fat-freezing and hydrafacial treatments and lived a luxury lifestyle she could not afford.
The 36-year-old spent the money on trips to five star hotels and Center Parcs and spoiling her children with riding lessons and new clothes.
Le-Clercq’s defence barrister said she had suffered from “imposter syndrome” when she found herself surrounded by “beautiful and confident women” and felt pressure to look like them.
But Judge Robert Pawson told Le-Clercq that she was “entirely selfish” and described some of her social media posts as her “cavorting around the place having fun”.
He said: “You weren’t living within your means, you spent other people’s money on any number of materialistic and shallow things. You didn’t prioritise your children, you prioritised fun and spending. You were entirely selfish.”
The mother-of-two was the practice manager for award-winning River Aesthetics, a private beauty clinic in Bournemouth, Dorset.
Customers spent thousands of pounds on treatments like skin tightening, face lifts and lip fillers.
Bournemouth Crown Court heard that instead of depositing cash payments into the company’s bank account she transferred them to her own from April 2022 to March 2023.
She was caught when the clinic’s accountant notified owner Dr Victoria Manning of a cash shortfall of £48,683.
Dr Manning approached Le-Clercq about the missing money and she claimed it was in a holding account due to an incorrect number and would be resolved.
But she then left a resignation letter for Dr Manning.
Le-Clercq had ‘imposter syndrome’
Richard Tutt, prosecuting, said: “Rebecca Le-Clercq admitted to taking the cash. She stated a number of personal reasons for doing so including mental health, her father’s death and the breakdown of her marriage.”
Amber Atwill, defending, said Le-Clercq felt like she needed to “look perfect” after starting her job at the beauty clinic.
She said the theft was not sophisticated and it was “too easy” for her to take and spend the money.
Ms Atwill said: “Nobody noticed, nobody questioned it, which in her mind made it seem like it wasn’t missing.
“She wanted to provide her children a better life. She had imposter syndrome, surrounded by a luxury brand, beautiful, confident women yet she did not feel worthy.
“It changed when she had money, she felt like she fit in and she could post on social media.”
She said her client wanted to apologise to her former colleagues, adding: “She knows she did wrong and hates herself for it. She is sorry and wants desperately to apologise to Dr Manning and the team she worked alongside.”
‘You are living in cuckoo land’
Le-Clercq, of Bournemouth, pleaded guilty to one count of theft by an employee and was given a suspended prison sentence.
Judge Pawson told her: “I think you are living in cloud cuckoo land, I don’t think you have got a clue.
“You worked your way through £1,000 a week for a year and you have nothing to show for it other than a load of social media posts.
“You may well suffer from imposter syndrome and low self-esteem but it is hard to reconcile that with the photographs taken off your phone and social media of you cavorting around the place having fun.
“I don’t see a scintilla of remorse, I see someone who became addicted to that shallow, consumer culture and addicted to spending money on fripperies.”
He sentenced her to 14 months, suspended for two years, with a three-month curfew and 120 hours of unpaid work.