Jacqueline McPhie pocketed £1,376,935 while working as the vice-president of finance at Altus Intervention in Aberdeen.

The High Court in Edinburgh heard on Tuesday how the businesswoman felt her annual wage of £146,848 was not enough to provide her family with a comfortable lifestyle.

McPhie, who previously admitted embezzling from her employers, felt “undervalued” by her bosses.

The 46-year-old, who was convicted of stealing £250,000 from her old job 16 years ago, faked invoices as part of the scam.

She spent £80,000 on a Range Rover Sport car, as well as between £60,000 to £70,000 on a new garage and driveway and £30,000 on a summer house in her garden.

McPhie spent a further £52,000 on a new kitchen and the rest of the money on holidays and clothes.

Judge Lady Wise jailed McPhie, who lives with her parents in a caravan in Arbroath, Angus, for three years and four months.

She told the accused: “You are 46 years old and had what many people would regard as an enviable existence.

“You enjoyed a salary of almost £150,000 per annum, you were married with a child, your husband also had work.

“Your motivation can only have been greed, to have even more material wealth than your position allowed you to accrue. There is in my view no alternative but to impose a custodial sentence on this occasion.”

Defence advocate Tony Lenehan told Lady Wise his client was “very unhappy” at the time of her offending behaviour and is currently embroiled in a divorce.

He added: “She feels that she was placed under pressure to provide wealth for her family unit.

“She found that she secured happiness in her relationship by providing material wealth to her family unit. She was the main source of income.

“Her husband’s company did not make much money. She also felt that she was undervalued by her company.

“Her decision-making abilities were not at the strongest at this time. She then decided to undertake the scheme which has placed her in the court today.”

The court heard McPhie’s husband was the sole director of a company called Craigie Knowe Limited, a contractor’s firm which was registered to the family’s home on Great Western Road, Aberdeen.

McPhie had “full access” to the company’s bank accounts and was a signatory to them, as well as having full “oversight” of the finances at Altus.

She started using her husband’s company to steal the funds by faking invoices and emails from senior Altus staff which authorised payments to McPhie.

McPhie had previously been given community service in October 2000 after admitting embezzling funds while working as a finance manager with Renfrewshire-based firm Inventec.