Twelve-year ban for director who stole from firm to buy horses

Lisa Crawshaw said she found buying horses “more addictive than drugs”.

Lisa Crawshaw, 46, was a director of Scunthorpe-based family haulage firm C&C Transport, from 2006 until 2020. She admitted to stealing over £1.7 million from the business, using the money to buy horses and equestrian equipment.

Her fellow directors, including her brother, were completely unaware of her actions, only discovering them when the business started receiving letters from creditors when the company was sold.

At her sentencing at Grimsby Crown Court, Crawshaw said she found buying horses “more addictive than drugs”.

The company ceased trading in October 2018 but remained live on the Companies House register until August 2020 when it went into liquidation.

The disqualification undertaking, which runs for 12 years from June 29, 2021, means she must not directly or indirectly, become involved, without the permission of the court, in the promotion, formation or management of a company.

Jo Walker, lead investigator in the case said on August 11, “Ms Crawshaw abused her position as a director of her company to commit fraud, and the length of her disqualification period should act as a deterrent to other directors who might be tempted to exploit their position in a similar way.”

Disqualification undertakings are the administrative equivalent of a disqualification order but do not involve court proceedings, or if court proceedings have already started, bring them to an immediate end. Persons subject to a disqualification order are bound by a range of restrictions.

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