A schools’ IT technician stole more than £70,000 worth of iPads and laptops and sold them on.
A total of 232 devices were taken from Academies Enterprise Trust, which has schools in the Hull and Louth areas. Proceeds of Crime action will be taken against Callum Revell, 25, after he told police he took the equipment from the schools because “it was easy money.”
Revell of Briarwood Close, Hull, admitted theft by an employee by taking iPads and laptops between May 2023 and October 2023. They were sold to associates to sell on further on eBay.
Prosecuting at Hull Crown Court, Billy Torbett said the Trust has 57 schools, with five of them in the Hull and Louth areas. The devices were stolen from Kingswood Academy and Sirius North Secondary School in Hull.
Mr Torbett said: “Both of these schools provide iPads and laptops to their students, teachers and members of staff. These devices are within all different departments with both schools and are managed via a management system controlled by the school’s IT department.
“The defendant was employed within the IT department as a technician. On Tuesday May 30, 2023 a stock check was taken on all laptops and iPads within both trusts, and this stock check was then compared against the management system, and it showed that all devices were accounted for.
“However, on July 17, 2023 all members of staff were requested to return all iPads and laptops in order for them to be updated in preparation for the next school term. This was completed. However, it was discovered that a number of the said devices were missing. In total 142 iPads and 90 laptops to the approximate value of £75,000.
“A full sweep of the building was completed to ensure that there weren’t any devices still in cupboards or classrooms. None were found.”
The prosecutor said Revell had been signing out equipment for repair or disposal, without authority. IT colleagues carried out a search on eBay and found an account “Emilybubs31” which had 15 of them for sale.
Mr Torbett said on October 4, 2023, Revell was sent to the Hall Road Academy premises to complete some work. He removed some devices from the school system. It was then discovered on CCTV that the defendant left the school site at 12.45pm for unknown reasons. He was questioned by his manager and told him he had left early at 2pm.
On October 6, 2023, Revell removed a further five devices from the school management system, again without any prior authority. He was arrested by police on October 9 at work. A number of the items were recovered .
The prosecutor said the total loss to Academies Enterprise Trust was £73,311.28. In a police interview he initially denied the offence. He said he had sometimes taken equipment home for testing at the request of his manager but had already returned it. He said he was comfortable with his finances earning around £2,300 per month.
His mobile phone revealed text messages which police officers showed to him. He later confirmed that he had stolen the iPads and laptops and accepted he sold them all to his friend. The defendant received nearly £29,000 in payment, Mr Torbett said.
The prosecutor said: “He said he did it because it was easy money.” Spokesman for The Trust, Martin Simpson said the offence disrupted children’s lessons. He said Kingswood served one of the most deprived areas in the country.
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He said there were concerns some of the iPads had not been fully swiped and that private information could be in the hands of others, breaching data protection. For Revell, Cathy Kioko-Gilligan said her client had no previous convictions and he had admitted the offence at the earliest opportunity at court.
Sentencing the former technician, Judge John Thackray KC said: “You stole £70,000 worth of computers and laptops. This is public money and these are difficult times. It had a significant effect on the school and you stole these items over a period of time.”
He added: “There was a high degree of trust in you and there was an element of it being sophisticated.” He imposed two years in prison, suspended for two years and ordered Revell to do 300 hours of unpaid work.
The judge said Proceeds of Crime action will be pursued with the hope all the money can be recovered.