A woman who admitted to stealing over $70,000 from her employer over the course of 17 months was sentenced to six months in prison with another six months probation in Supreme Court on Friday.

Vanessa Judy Tucker, 42, of Cut Road, St. George's admitted to stealing $70,771 when she was an employee of MEF Enterprises Ltd, the owners of the Little Venice group of restaurants, between May 30, 2000 and October 9, 2001.

Puisne Judge Ian Kawaley said he had some "sympathy for the defendant as it was quite clear that she committed this offence under circumstances of real financial and family hardship".

However, Mr. Justice Kawaley said Tucker had "not only committed a breach of trust but had committed over 60 individual fraudulent acts".

And he said the theft took place in a "very deliberate manner".

Mr. Justice Kawaley said he took into account her guilty plea, speedy confession to Police, and the submissions of her lawyer Craig Attridge as to her remorse. He also took into account the fact there will be an impact on her family.

Crown counsel Shakira Dill said Tucker was a part time office junior for the Little Venice Group in 1996, for five years. Then in 2000 a new system was put in place, where the company's payroll instructions were faxed to the Bank of Bermuda.

Employees at Cafe Lido, Harbourfront and La Trattoria would be paid after these faxes were received.

"The defendant processed false payments to the accounts of her fianc? and daughter, authorised from the restaurants and deposited into the accounts," Ms Dill said. "Even after she resigned she used the account and forged signatures on the payroll sheets and faxed them from her home".

On February 26, 2003, she was arrested and told Police she still had forms at home and used her personal fax machine to send the forms to the bank.

"None of the money was recovered," Miss Dill said. "This defendant is solely responsible for the offences committed. These offences are very prevalent at this time."