I’ve sacked my manager for stealing. Should I go to the police?

 This article first appeared September 30, 2011.

Dear Aunty B,

I recently found out when my general manager went on holiday that he had been stealing from the company.

I sacked him even though he tried to excuse his actions by saying I owed him the money as a bonus, which I didn’t. And besides, the amount of money he took was far more than a bonus.

My problem is I don’t know what to do now.

If I go to the police it will be a nightmare because my friend got ripped off by her marketing manager and the police ended up taking up days of her time, and in the end nothing happened to her manager except she went to a competitor and is probably doing the same thing there.

What do you think Aunty B?

He has gone from my life but I am still very angry at what he did and I don’t want him to do it to anyone else because I subsequently found out that he had done it once – or at least once – before.

But even if he is charged how do I make sure the world knows about it so that he can’t do it again?

Or do I just move on?

Dear do I move on,

It is a weird thing in life, but we humans are driven to do what we know is the right thing to do.

And the right thing to do is to collect the evidence and take it to your accountant, because she or he might have some suggestions on the way it is presented.

When you are sure you can clearly prove the theft take it to the police.

Once he is charged you won’t feel so angry and when that happens you let the media know.

For example, if the story appears on SmartCompany, which does very well in search engine rankings, there is a good chance that anyone who ever searches for his name will come across those articles.

I am sure once he is charged you will feel you have done what you must and move on.

Be smart,
Your Aunty B

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