A former employee of an Essex business who sold stolen bottles of perfume and other toiletry items on eBay for more than £4,000 has walked free from court after a judge decided not to send her straight to prison.

Anna Gicko, 31, of George Williams Way, Colchester, had denied handling stolen goods belonging to Linc Freight Management of Coggeshall and fraud between January and August last year but was found guilty after a trial at Ipswich Crown Court last week.

Sentence was adjourned for a probation report and yesterday she was given a 15-month prison sentence suspended for 12 months and ordered to do 150 hours’ unpaid work in the community.

She was ordered to pay £4,649 compensation at the rate of £50 a month and the judge ordered that the stolen items seized from Gicko should be restored to Linc Freight Management.

Sentencing her, Recorder Ian Evans said the offences crossed the custody threshold.

However, he said Gicko had been assessed as being at low risk of reoffending and in the circumstances of the case he felt able to pass a suspended sentence.

The judge said Gicko had received 250 stolen bottles of perfume, cream and gels worth £13,122.

He said she had sold the stolen items on eBay for £4,649 and a police officer had found a list of the prices at which she was advertising the items for sale.

He said that during her trial Gicko had made allegations against a former colleague who was a supervisor at the company.

Recorder Evans said Gicko had clearly been close to the source of the stolen goods and had come into possession of bottles of Michael Buble “By Invitation” perfume within days of them coming into the warehouse.

Folashade Abidouin, for Gicko, said her client accepted the jury’s verdicts and was very sorry.

She said Gicko sent money back to her family in Latvia and was worried that she wouldn’t be able to do this if she was sent to prison.

”Others will be affected by her being incarcerated,” said Miss Abidouin.

She said her client had learned her lesson and was determined not to find herself before a court again.