A SELF-EMPLOYED loan company worker made up the names of clients to pocket thousands of pounds for himself, a court heard.

Lee Howard was even making regular payments on the deals so his company would not get suspicious about his law-breaking.

But the 39-year-old owned up to his scam when he was questioned by his bosses about another unrelated matter.

Howard was yesterday given a six-month prison sentence, suspended for 18 months, after he admitted four charges of making a false instrument and ten of false accounting.

The judge, Recorder Ian Thorp, also ordered Howard to pay £2,195 in compensation and £200 court costs.

Howard, of Douglas Street, Middlesbrough, was also ordered to carry out 200 hours of unpaid work for the community over the next year.

Mr Recorder Thorp told him: "I have come to the conclusion that a custodial sentence is justified here, and that only a custodial sentence can meet the gravity of this type of offending against an employer.

"However, I also take into account the other factors which have been put before me - that you are repaying these loans and your lack of previous convictions - and I have to consider whether it serves any benefit to send you to prison on this day.

"You should understand that this sort of offending would normally result in you going straight to prison."

Howard, who was shaking uncontrollably and had to leave the dock to be sick, was told he would be jailed if he committed further offences in the next 18 months.

His barrister, Sam Faulks, said: "Seldom have I represented such a nervous, worried and remorseful client. You can see and hear the effect this has had upon him.

"There is hope in dealing with this man. He is not an unintelligent man, either, with nine GCSEs.

"He is not the sort of usual tattooed monster who does not have any hope."

Richard Parsell, prosecuting, told Teesside Crown Court yesterday that Howard's scam was carried out between October 2004 and August last year, when he worked for the Provident Personal Credit Company.

Howard created fictitious accounts and falsified signatures for people who had not applied for loans, and collected a total of £6,098 from seven bogus agreements.

The court heard that he has repaid all but £2,195 to the company.