More than £1m has been returned to a company defrauded by an employer to feed his gambling addiction.

Andrew May, 46, of Phillip Nurse Road in Dersingham, was found to have stolen £1,336,916 from his employer Sealskinz, following an investigation by Norfolk police.

He was jailed for four years in June 2021 for the crime.

Following enquiries by the Eastern Region Special Operations Unit (ERSOU) working with the Gambling Commission, the total amount of fraudulent money he had gambled has been uncovered.

ERSOU's work helped lead to voluntary divestments totalling £1,243,110.45 being given directly to Sealskinz from the gambling institutions May had used.

Further work by ERSOU investigators established that May also had £49,500 in assets and, following a King's Lynn Crown Court hearing earlier this month, he was ordered to repay the amount within six months or face an additional nine months’ imprisonment.

The funds will also be given to Sealskinz.

Paul Fitzsimmons, from ERSOU, said: “This case once more underlines that ERSOU’s specialist financial investigators will continue to use the Proceeds of Crime Act and asset recovery powers to strip the assets of criminals.

“Our teams are committed to ensuring crime doesn’t pay and will leave no stone unturned as they look to return money to victims of crime.”