A Canadian accountant was yesterday acquitted of stealing more than $54,000 from his employer.

A Supreme Court jury took three hours to reach unanimous acquittals in 33 of the 35 counts of stealing and false accounting faced by Colin Andrew Cave.

Mr. Cave, the former financial controller of Davison's of Bermuda, originally faced 36 charges, but Puisne Judge Richard Ground yesterday directed the jury to dismiss one of the charges.

The jury handed down majority verdicts for two charges relating to a controversial $25,000 wire transfer.

"God bless you all,'' Mr. Cave told the nine women and three men before leaving the courtroom. "Thank you very much for setting me free.'' Mr. Cave was hired as the financial controller of Davison's in May, 1995.

He was fired after eight months for allegedly "not paying attention to details''.

On the day after his dismissal, he wired $25,000 from a Davison's account to his personal bank in New York.

And the company's president and managing director, Norman Davison, said that auditors later discovered numerous "unauthorised'' company payments for Mr.

Cave's travel expenses, overseas insurance payments, and loans.

But Mr. Cave said he had been entitled to the $25,000 as severance pay because he had been prevented from completing a one-year contract.

And he maintained Mr. Davison had secretly given permission for all of the loans, travel expenses and insurance payments.

Mr. Cave was extradited from his Florida home last year. He was held in custody for ten months at the Westgate Correctional Facility after failing to meet bail and surety requirements.

Yesterday, the 49-year-old wept as the verdicts were read and hugged two prison officers before leaving the court room.

"I want to thank Mr. Pettingill who had confidence in me from the beginning and said he knew I was innocent,'' he told The Royal Gazette . "He is the true hero.'' Mr. Cave also thanked Mr. Justice Ground for "tolerating'' his emotions during testimony.

And he described Crown counsel Peter Eccles as "a good man''.

Earlier, Mr. Justice Ground reminded the jury that Mr. Cave was "otherwise a man of good character'' who had reached his age without committing offence.

"You may think he is entitled to ask you to give some weight to his character,'' said Mr. Justice Ground.

And he said the question of Mr. Cave's guilt centred upon the "honesty of his belief''.

"You don't really have to puzzle out the terms of his employment,'' Mr.

Justice Ground told the jury.

Even if Mr. Davison owed money to Mr. Cave, Mr. Justice Ground noted, the disagreement should have been settled "through the course of law''.

"You should not confuse his entitlement to claim the money with his entitlement to take the money,'' he advised.

"The question is, did he honestly believe that it was right for him to take it as he did, without authorisation.''