A BUS company accountant who scammed his employers out of hundreds of thousands of pounds has been given more time to pay back his ill-gotten gains.

Colin Smart is having to repay £312,442 after he admitted stealing from the Oxford Bus Company over a six-year period.

Smart, who is serving a four-year prison sentence for the fraud, had been due to pay off all the money by this week but appeared in Oxford Crown Court again on Monday to request more time.

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The court heard how Smart’s share of the family home in Witney could be bought by his daughter, with the proceeds going towards paying off the final £170,000.

His daughter has secured a £100,000 mortgage on the property and could be in line to inherit some money from an aunt, who is selling a house in Botley in order to move into a care home.

Judge Ian Pringle granted an extension of six months while the final arrangements are sorted out.

The court also heard how Smart, who went to prison in February 2018, could soon be moved to a lower category jail, potentially allowing him to secure work.

Between May 2011 and March 2017, Smart used his position as a business analyst at Oxford Bus Company to steal £733,390.

The money was deposited directly into his own bank accounts and used for gambling online and on expensive cars.