A VODAFONE manager who stole £23,000 worth of phones destined for charity has avoided jail.

TomHumble, 28, of Wickford Road, Westcliff, took 461 used phones from the recycling bin at the Vodafone shop in the Eastgate Centre, Basildon, over a period of about four years.

He then sold them to the phone trading website Mazuma Mobile.

He was handed a 16-month suspended prison sentence when he appeared at Basildon Crown Court on Tuesday.

Carolyn Gardiner, prosecuting, told the court the thefts started in 2009 when Humble was employed as a senior sales advisor on a £17,000 salary.

A year later, he was promoted to assistant manager and given a £6,500 pay rise, but continued taking the phones, usually as he locked up.

The court heard the phones should have been sold or stripped for parts with the proceeds donated to charity.

Humble was rumbled after an internal investigation by Vodafone, who reported him to Essex Police.

Ian Clift, mitigating, told the court Humble started stealing because he and his girlfriend struggled to make ends meet after moving in together.

Mr Clift said: “His strategy for solving their problems was deeply flawed.

He committed this crime with a heavy heart and feels a great deal of shame.”

Handing Humble his suspended sentence, as well as 150 hours unpaid work, Recorder Robert Glancy said: “There are a lot of people in the country who find themselves under financial pressure, but they don’t resort to thieving from their employer when trusted to run a shop.

“This crime is made worse by the fact you knew the proceeds were going to charity.”

The court heard Humble had managed to find a new job in an office.

Recorder Glancy said: “It is because you have found a job and are the source of support for your family you are not going to prison immediately.”