The former chief purchasing officer of Oxford University was spared jail last week after she admitted stealing £31,065 from her employers to fund a shopping addiction.
Patricia Whitehead, 58, bought computers with the university's money then sold them on to pay for an "extravagant" lifestyle collecting clothes she never wore, Oxford Crown Court heard.
But the court heard that she turned to crime only because of the stress of looking after her elderly parents. Ms Whitehead was sentenced to 150 hours'
community work.