AN employee has been charged with stealing £62,000 from her boss as he was battling against leukaemia.

Company director Ken Harrison has revealed that he has only been given a short time to live after his bone marrow collapsed six weeks ago.

And he has spoken of his determination to see justice over his missing money before he dies.

In a cruel twist, both Mr Harrison, 62, and his daughter Tracy, 39, are battling leukaemia as the family prepares for the court case.

Police said the cash was illegally removed from accounts belonging to UK Maintenance Services during a two-year period, from June 2005 until April this year.

They said the disappearing sums were eventually queried by a member of staff at the landscape gardening business, based on the Huncoat industrial estate.

Mandy Mills, 34, of Hoyle Street, Accrington, has been charged with 10 counts of theft and is due to appear at court next week.

Father-of-two Mr Harrison, from Bacup, said: "I was diagnosed with leukaemia six years ago.

"I appeared to be fighting it but six weeks ago it got much worse.

"I don't know if I could say that my bone marrow collapse has been a result of this, but there could be a connection between that and the bitterness I feel about all of this.

He added: "I don't care about the money. If we got it back I would probably give it away, we have rolled with these punches.

"But I am worried about my family and the business when I go, and this has done nothing to help."

The firm, which employs around 80, had suffered a period of uncertainty when one of its major clients, Little Chef, hit trouble.

Mr Harrison said: "We were very worried about what might happen to the staff - but during that week £4,000 went missing. It could have jeopardised a lot of people's jobs.

"The sense of betrayal is far worse than the theft."

Ken and his wife Virginia have been married for 43 years after they eloped to Gretna Green as teenagers.

He said: "I had to sell the wedding ring to get us back to England.

"She has nursed me through my illness and we have been through a lot of adventures together.

"I just wish that this had not been one of them."

Det Sgt Paul Rudd, of Accrington CID, said: "A woman has been charged with 10 counts of theft amounting to £62,000 and will appear before Hyndburn Magistrates Court on Monday."