A former senior print and stationery buyer for Anglian Windows has been jailed for 18 months after setting up a shell company to sub-contract work, obtaining nearly 80,000 in contracts and bribes in the process.


Mark Voegeli admitted conspiracy to defraud Anglian Windows over a five-year period from 1992 to 1997 and six counts of corruption, at Norwich Crown Court on 2 March.


Voegeli, who was said to have a print budget of around 800,000, set up shell company RMS, placed print contracts with it and then sub-contracted the work, adding on a profit to the price.


Voegeli said in court that he acted dishonestly due to excessive debt problems.


The court was told that the matter only came to light following an internal audit by Anglian Windows.


Judge Simon Barham said that Voegeli had abused his position of trust, and that these were serious acts of corruption in commerce involving substantial amounts.


A former sales director of Norwich printing firm Castle Colour Press, Brian Wilson, was also jailed for six months after admitting six counts of corruption from 1993 to 1997.


Wilson paid Voegeli for information on prices to try and maintain the business his company held.


Castle Colour Press director Barry Howard said: At no time were we aware of what was going on. As soon as the allegations came to light, Brian resigned,
and subsequently retired in 1997, and the company then took steps to put things right.


Howard described Wilson as a broken man who bitterly regrets what he has done.


Castle Colour Press, now a packaging company,
held the Anglian Windows account for nearly 20 years. Wilson worked in the printing business for over 30 years.
A spokeswoman for Anglian Windows confirmed that Voegeli had been senior print and stationery buyer at the company, but would not comment further.


Story by Andy Scott