The former personal assistant to U2′s Adam Clayton received a seven-year jail sentence  for embezzlement yesterday from a judge in Dublin, Ireland Circuit Criminal Court.

A jury had previously found Carol Hawkins guilty of 181 counts of theft from Clayton’s bank accounts over a four-year period. The amounts totaled nearly $4 million.

As The Inquisitr previously reported, the U2 bassist testified last month at the Hawkins trial that he had been blindsided by Hawkins who had worked for him for 17 years:

She had my absolute trust. We had been together a long time; working together. She had been very conscientious. I felt she looked after my money and on many occasions accused others of being greedy, so I was extremely surprised.

Hawkins, who was a signatory on at least two of  Clayton’s bank accounts, allegedly wrote 181 checks to pay for vacations, designer clothing, and horses among other things.

According to CNN, Judge Patrick McCartan made these comments during the sentencing hearing:

…these were crimes rooted in greed and nothing else…Nothing, frankly, could explain away the scale of this dishonesty other than the greed in pursuit of a lavish lifestyle that was no responsibility of Mr. Clayton’s

Hawkins, 49, had pleaded not guilty in the case.

The judge also ordered that the proceeds from the sale of Hawkins’ NYC apartment be turned over to Clayton.

Clayton is highly regarded for his bass guitar work on songs such as “New Year’s Day,” “Bullet the Blue Sky,” “With or Without You,” “Mysterious Ways,” “Get on Your Boots,” and “Magnificent.” As a member of U2, he has won 22 Grammy awards.

Carol Hawkins Sent To Prison For Stealing From U2′s Adam Clayton is a post from: The Inquisitr