THE head waiter at a Ribchester restaurant who used his position to transfer large sums of money into his own account has been jailed for two months.

Blackburn magistrates heard that Shafkat Munir used his supervisor's card to access the till system at the De Tabley Bar and Grill.

And in a two-week period before Christmas, he siphoned off more than £2,000 from the restaurant takings.

Munir, 23, of Mulberry Walk, Blackburn, pleaded guilty to theft of £600 on December 9, £600 on December 17, £200 on December 18, and £800 on December 23.

He was also dealt with for breach of a community punishment order imposed in 2001 for theft of perfume from his employer at the time, Express Gifts in Church.

The order was revoked and Munir sentenced to one month in prison, to run concurrently.

Neil White, prosecuting, said Munir had been promoted to the post of head waiter the month before the offences, and his position of trust meant that he had a card which allowed him to complete automated card transactions involving customers.

"In essence he was able to refund card payments to customers' accounts," said Mr White.

"On these four occasions he used his card to access the till and then transferred money on to his own debit card."

Clare Knight, defending, said that while a large amount of money had been taken, only £600 was outstanding.

She said the offences were unsophisticated and it had been inevitable the missing money would be traced to Munir's account.

Speaking after the hearing, David Breen, licensee of the De Tabley, said: "We are pleased that justice has been seen to be done and we are very grateful the courts have supported our prosecution of him."