A DISGRACED former director of Cardigan Castle who pocketed more than £40,000 while he headed the award-winning restoration project was branded ‘despicable’ by a judge as he handed him a 21-month suspended jail sentence.

Jac Davies, 34, was brought in to spearhead the next phase of the high-profile venue's development in September 2017, but began secretly syphoning off castle funds within weeks of starting.

The married father-of-two, of 21 Dol Dintir, Cardigan, diverted cash from the castle PayPal account, failed to bank cash takings and cheques from its shop, and claimed back cash from an invented online course, Swansea Crown Court heard.

He dismissed suggestions he was dishonest when castle trustees confronted him, claiming that cash may have been stolen, or even mistakenly thrown out by the venue's cleaners. He went so far as to swear on his daughter's life that he was honest.

Trust bosses called in the police after a series of financial discrepancies were uncovered.

Davies was brought in after the castle had won national acclaim for beating off UK-wide competition to land Channel 4’s Restoration Of The Year award.

But he eventually admitted syphoning off cash and claiming back money he had not spent.

Two fraud charges, one relating to £4,143,20 from the castle on December 21, 2017, and a second for a total of £28,955.55 covering a period between February 4 and November 3, 2019, the court heard.

He also admitted stealing £1,908.18 from Cardigan Castle Enterprises between May 2, 2018 and May 24, 2019, and a further £6,024.79 between October 1, 2018 and May 9, 2019.

The castle charity lost out to the tune of £43,052 as a result of almost two years of dishonesty and has since been hit with higher insurance premiums. Davies has since paid back £40,000, the court heard.

Danielle Lodwig, prosecuting, said that Davies had fraudulently used a company credit card to make ‘personal transactions including at Next and the Celtic Manor Resort,’ she told the sentencing hearing.

She said when confronted by castle trustees, Davies claimed ‘the credit card had been mistakenly merged with his own credit card’.

She said that he went on to assure castle bosses that the card had been destroyed. Later investigations revealed that he had lied, and had also extended its credit limit from £2000, to £10,000.

Ms Lodwig said that Davies was responsible for banking the cash takings of the Cardigan Castle shop, but failed to do so. He also instigated the setting-up of a Paypal account so that an online shop could be established.

Davies also claimed back cash for completing a Masters of Hospitality online course, failed to do the course, but later handed in receipts, apparently from the company running it, claiming back cash.

Davies was confronted repeatedly during the period he was in charge, but managed to convince trustees that mistakes had happened.

When asked where cash from the shop had gone he suggested that he had occasionally left it on a window ledge.

"He stated that he may have left it in various locations, and it had been stolen," Ms Lodwig told the court.

"He went so far as swearing on his daughters' lives that he did not take the money for personal reasons," she added.

"He also suggested that the money may have been taken out by the cleaners as rubbish, by mistake."

She said that investigating his financial dishonesty had been "complex" and time consuming.

Judge Paul Thomas QC, told Davies: "There is no other description appropriate of you other than to say you are a thoroughly dishonest individual.

"You took money from your employer who trusted you. That money was not from a business but a charity."

"This was not an isolated lapse but part of a sustained course of deliberate misconduct."

The judge said that Davies had even sworn on his daughter's life while she was ill in hospital.

"Despicable. You swore on her life that you had not taken any of the money. That, Mr Davies, was completely despicable."

The judge also dismissed the many references he had received claiming that Davies was a ‘man of integrity and trustworthy’.

"You did have a good reputation. That reputation is now in tatters."

Passing sentence, the judge said that he was taking Davies's previous clean character into consideration, and the fact that he had already lodged £40,000 with his solicitor to pay back what he had stolen.

He sentenced Davies to 21 months prison, suspended for two years, ordered him to do 200 hours voluntary work and 15 days’ rehabilitation activity.