Charity Boss, Rushna Choudhury, 46, finance manager of a charity for vulnerable people used bogus invoices to swindle the money out of the Social Interest Group for more than a year.

Rushna Choudhury Jailed for 5 Years Stealing £170,000 As A Charity Boss in Islington

Choudhury had used her colleagues’ log-in details to raid the charity’s funds, and made 24 separate transfers to bank accounts held by her and her son.

The charity, based in Milner Square in Islington, offers a support network for other charities helping people coping with mental health issues, substance abuse, homelessness and disability. It said £171,933 was stolen by Choudhury between June 2016 and August 2017.

The fraud cost it more than £300,000, including the price of hiring staff to cover the jobs of those who were suspended during the investigation.

The court heard that Choudhury hid in her shed and claimed to have taken an overdose when police went to arrest her. They also found designer goods at her home. She had been given the charity role despite a previous conviction for defrauding a housing organisation out of £77,750, and said she stole money to pay off that previous debt.

Choudhury, from Gravesend in Kent, pleaded guilty to fraud by abuse of position and was jailed for four-and-a-half years.