Solicitor jailed for embezzling clients' cash from Grangemouth law firm

Leo McGarvey, 54, embezzled the sum by misappropriating professional feesfrom RGM Solicitors in La Porte Precinct between 2011 and 2017.

Falkirk Sheriff Court heard how McGarvey, of Airdrie, took cash payments from at least eight clients but failed to put them through the firm’s books. He was sentenced at Falkirk Sheriff Court after having pled guilty at a hearing last month.

Prosecutors advised the court that McGarvey’s actions were uncovered after he went on long-term sick leave in 2017. When financial discrepancies came to light, the firm called in police to investigate.

Sineidin Corrins, Procurator Fiscal for Tayside Central & Fife, said it was important for the public to have trust in members of the legal profession. She said: “This individual embezzled a sum from his employers which also impacted on the members of the public involved.

“It’s essential that people have faith in solicitors to act with honesty and integrity. COPFS take criminality of this nature very seriously. We will use all the powers available to us to prosecute those who would use their professional position for criminal gain. “COPFS is committed to working with criminal justice partners to combat financial crime.”

A post on the Law Society of Scotland website shows that McGarvey left RGM Solicitors “with effect from February 23, 2018. He graduated from the University of Strathclyde in 1999.

RGM Solicitors has offices in Grangemouth and Linlithgow and earlier this year merged with Glasgow-based Pacitti Jones.