Moseley, 42, was sentenced at Chelmsford Crown Court last Friday (8 March) and is being held at Chelmsford Prison until a suitable prison is allocated.

It was ruled that Moseley, who earned 50,000 a year at Merlin, should serve at least half of his sentence and he has been banned from being involved in the management of a company for five years.

The value of the charges Moseley pleaded guilty to totalled 58,000, "but there were other charges that werent brought," said detective sergeant Kay Meiklejohn of Essex Police Economic Crime Unit.

Among the crimes committed by Moseley, who had worked for Canvey Island-based Merlin for six years until January 2001, was the purchase of two cars (a BMW 323 and a Chrysler Grand Voyager) using company funds.

But the most "wicked" was diverting 31,000 from a 50,000 death-in-service insurance pay-out to his own bank account. The money was due to be paid to a child left orphaned following the death of another Merlin employee.

It also emerged that Moseley had twice been convicted of fraud before, in 1977 and 1990. He did not declare the convictions to Merlin and police cannot determine if he declared them to recruitment agency Reed Accounting, which placed Moseley with Merlin. "Were told they havent got their records any more," said Meiklejohn.

Merlin managing director David Marrable said the sentence was a "huge relief". "Some people said it was too short. But he could have got 16 minutes in a broom cupboard for all I care. We just wanted to make a stand."

Story by Lauretta Roberts