The licensee of a popular island pub falsified records to conceal a £4,000 accounting discrepancy, Douglas magistrates were told.

Mark Haigh, of Sarmation Fold, Ribchester, in Lancashire, told the court he had been cashing up at the Raven in Ballaugh during TT fortnight last year when he was called away unexpectedly. He did not return to the pub until the following day when he found around £6,000 missing from the takings.

Prosecutor Michael Jelski told the court the matter only came to light in August when the accounts team at brewery Heron and Brearley, for which High worked, noticed anomalies on the accounting records.

He said a paying-in slip recorded a deposit at Ballaugh post office of £930, but the stub from the slip had been altered to read £4,930.

When the company’s area manager visited the pub to check on the safe, Haigh told him he would find a shortfall of about £4,000.

Haigh then explained about the money that was misplaced and said he had not told anyone, taking it upon himself to repay it. He was suspended from his job then dismissed in September last year.

’He was in the process of repaying the money when he falsified the paying in slip to hide the shortfall in the safe,’ Mr Jelski said.

The court heard Haigh who started working at the pub in 2013, was described as a popular and chatty landlord. The 48-year-old admitted falsifying the paying-in record on August 15 last year.

Representing Haigh, David Clegg told the court his client would benefit from a community service order. He said the defendant, who has since moved back to the UK was working and was the sole breadwinner for his family, but could nonetheless complete community service at the weekends.

’He did not take the money but he accepts it was wrong to falsify the record. He hoped he could pay the money back and put things right but he should not have falsified the record. ’In a misguided and panic-stricken state he thought it was the best thing to do. He thought if he could pay the money back then all would be well,’ he said.

Magistrates’ chairman Alan Gelling said: ’We don’t know what became of the money or why but if you had held your hands up straight away, this may not have happened.’

Haigh received 120 hours’ community service, to be completed in a year, and must pay £125 costs.