Graeme Wilson, a sheriff clerk in Edinburgh, has pled guilty to faking court expenses in a series of scams over a period of three years.

He claimed  £130,000 in false juror expenses over three years by faking signatures on jury members' expenses forms, and wrote himself blank cheques billing the court.

He stole approximately £52,000 between 2006 and 2009, and set up a further scam when the computer system was changed and he was moved to a different department. In total, he faked 72 invoices claiming to come from doctors requesting payment for fees for psychological assessments which he said the court had called for. The cheques were posted to false addresses and redirected to him, allowing him to steal a further £78,000. 

"It is a shocking breach of trust and the scale and the way in which this has been carried out is quite breathtaking," said Sheriff Deirdre MacNeill QC.

The Scottish Court Service said that as the case involves public funds, they will be seeking full restitution.