Boss steals $713,000 from his company, buys kittens

Matthew Farrimond pleaded guilty to 12 counts of fraud and was sentenced to four years in prison. Photo / Supplied

The finance director of a building company in the UK has admitted to taking more than $713,000 from the company, the BBC reports.

Matthew Farrimond has pleaded guilty to 12 counts of fraud and one count of money laundering.

Farrimond use the money to fund a lavish lifestyle, which included pedigree kittens.

Police called him the "biggest threat" to the company's finances - and he was the finance boss.

According to the Crown Prosecution Service, Farrimond and his partner lived well above their means and used stolen money to fund their lifestyle, including putting nearly $300,000 as a deposit on a home.

The man reportedly created false invoices for "charity cheques" that were never given to charities. Instead, the funds were deposited into his personal account.

He'd worked at the company since 2010.

During this time, he made nine payments into his own personal account, which he then hid with fake invoices.

No one suspected anything until it all came to light when Farrimond left the company to start a new job.

He has been sentenced to four years in jail.