A FRAUDSTER boutique owner swindled £14,000 using her own shop's chip-and-pin machine.

Katie Lowcock processed fake 'refunds' to put cash onto her own personal bank card at her children's clothing business in Macclesfield, Cheshire.

6 Katie Lowcock put business cash into her personal bank account using her shop's chip-and-pin machine Credit: Cavendish Press

6 Lowcock, 31, processed the payments as customer refunds at her children's clothes shop in Macclesfield Credit: Google Maps

Police were called when the card machine's operators became worried they would not be paid for the thousands owed.

The mum-of-two had handed back only £4,000 of the £13,200 debt to First Data Merchant Solutions — which helps small businesses process card machine payments.

Lowcock, who runs the Little Miss Grace's Boutique, later claimed she didn't know what she was doing was illegal and always planned to pay the money back.

She said she need the money for her business and family and has since paid back a further £2,000. The shop is now said to be ''booming".'

6 Mum-of-two Lowcock claimed she did not realise what she was doing was illegal Credit: Cavendish Press

6 Lowcock, 31, paid herself £14,000 using the chip and pin fraud Credit: Cavendish Press

Lowcock pleaded guilty to fraud by false representation and was sentenced to five months jail suspended for 18 months.

Her con involved taking money from her business account with First Data and classing the transactions as customer refunds, which the company allows as long as it then is reimbursed.

But First Data was left £9,200 out-of-pocket when it reported Lowcock in January last year.

Prosecuting, Kate Gaskell said: "She used the business credit card at her disposal for her own personal gain and because of the position she was in within the company, this was an abuse of trust".

Lawyer Peter Casson, defending, told Stockport Magistrates' Court: "She knows she's been stupid and it was a foolish mistake doing what she did.

"There were some financial issues which she wanted to deal with at the time.

6 She was handed a suspended sentence at Stockport magistrates court Credit: Cavendish Press

6 Lowcock was also ordered to pay court costs and carry out unpaid work Credit: Cavendish Press

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"Her partner was out of employment so she was trying to keep the family afloat.

He added: "Since the incident she has been paying the company back at £200 a month. So far she has paid £2,000."

Lowcock was also ordered to complete 100 hours unpaid work and pay £365 court costs.

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