Prisons are known for having good gyms, and you can bet that's all 37-year-old Melinda Yates is looking forward to.
The bodybuilder from Queensland, Australia, will spend 5 years in prison after stealing over $200,000 from Woolworths while working as a payroll clerk.
She was caught trying to "flee" after she attempted to take a further $400,000 and fly to the US to represent Australia in an international bodybuilding competition.
Melissa Yates
Melissa Yates has fronted Brisbane District Court to defend her deeds - prosecutor Russell Hood said the bodybuilding 'fanatic' made it appear Woolworths was transferring money to former employees - when it was really going to her.
The court heard she used her knowledge of the Woolworths payroll system to siphon the money and apparently was only busted following a tiny error. Amazingly, the court heard she may have actually gotten away with the $640,000 had she not made the administrative mistake of forgetting to 'lock' a document.
It definetly would have been her shout in Vegas...
"[She] had booked flights, she had loaded up her credit cards, there was a rapid escalation in the attempts to siphon off money from the company," Mr Hood said.
"She wanted to extract as much funds as possible before fleeing the jurisdiction."
In just 6 months, Mr Hood claims Yates spent $100,000 on 'luxury items' while she lived in the US with her family.
Yates pleaded guilty to stealing $238,294 from Woolworths and attempting to take a further $400,000, and was sentenced to 5 years in prison with a parole period of 18 months.
I'm sure she'll have plenty of time in between sets in prison to think about it.
"Stay Fit, Stay Flexed!"
Author
Dayne Hudson