A security guard helped herself to £10 and £20 notes as she went on her rounds stocking ATM machines across the north.
Angela Murison hid the money in her socks – and stole nearly £4,000 over the course of a year.
She was eventually snared with the help of a spy camera installed in her van as she travelled around Inverness and the Highlands putting cassettes full of cash into hole-in-the-wall devices.
The G4S employee – who worked for the firm for 14 years – was spared a jail sentence yesterday, despite a sheriff branding her behaviour a “gross breach of trust”.
Instead, the 59-year-old was ordered to carry out 240 hours of unpaid work.
Inverness Sheriff Court was told that after her bosses became suspicious a surveillance camera was set up in Murison’s van.
Fiscal Stella Swan said she was filmed opening a cassette full of cash, rolling up a £20 note and hiding it in her sock.
In total, Murison, of 21 West Heather Gardens, Inverness, admitted stealing £3,770 from her employer between July 26, 2012 and June 3, 2013 at various locations in the Highlands.
When she was confronted by G4S managers, she initially insisted the cash was hers.
But when shown film taken by the hidden camera, she confessed.
Staff at G4S are forbidden from carrying their own money in company vans and when she was searched, another two £20 notes were found in her pocket.
Ms Swan told the court that the company was alerted to a number of low-value thefts which had been taking place regularly from its vans.
She added: “An analysis was done and her shifts coincided with the losses. Suspicion fell on her and the company installed a covert camera in her van.
“The cash cassettes are not intended to be opened by the staff but sometimes they jam.
“Although the technique is not authorised or shown to employees, the cassettes can be opened by sliding an implement between the catches to expose the notes inside.
“It is a quick fix if a cassette malfunctions, and this is done to save an engineer being called out.
“She was seen in a live camera feed to managers doing this on June 3. She was filmed opening the cassette, taking out a £20 note and placing it in her sock.
“Murison was then called to head office where the note was recovered. Another two £20 notes were discovered in her trouser pocket. At first she claimed the money belonged to her to buy food, but then the CCTV was shown of her removing the notes.”
Murison’s agent, solicitor Duncan Henderson, said: “Following the death of her father in 2012, colleagues noted that she had changed and I am not sure she has fully coped with that yet.
“It is in that background that these offences took place.
“£1,840.95 was stopped from her wages and the balance of £1,929.05 was paid by cheque by my office on December 23. G4S have not yet cashed it.”
Sheriff Margaret Neilson told Murison: “This was a gross breach of trust but I have taken into account your previous good character and it can be dealt with by an alternative to custody.”
A spokesman for G4S said last night: “We’re disappointed by the breach of trust placed in our employee in this case, although it is important to note that our internal security procedures led to the successful apprehension and prosecution of this individual, and most importantly the protection of our customers’ assets.”