A former health service finance worker is facing jail for dishonestly keeping more than £146,000 of NHS cash which was wrongly paid into his family bank accounts.

Sajid Khan, 34, worked in the finance department of Bradford and Airedale Primary Care Trust, when the wrongly authorised transactions were made, Bradford Crown Court was told.

Khan, of Walmer Villas, Manningham, Bradford, pleaded guilty yesterday to dishonestly retaining a wrongful credit of a total of £146,143 between September 26, 2005, and February 11, 2009.

The case had been due to start as a two-week long trial before he admitted the charge against him.

Judge Colin Burn adjourned sentencing for three months to allow Khan to attempt to pay back the Trust in a bid to avoid an immediate prison sentence.

But the judge warned him the “overwhelming likelihood” was that he would receive a spell behind bars.

He told Khan, a man of previous good character, to co-operate with his lawyers to try to “restore the Primary Care Trust’s financial affairs”.

Judge Burn said this would be an important factor in whether Khan ended up behind bars.

Khan, who worked for the Trust until May 2008, had capital sums of up to £15,500 paid into various family bank accounts during the time he was employed in the finance department.

The wrongly authorised payments ended in April 2008 when Khan received £1,736.

In all, Khan admitted holding on to £146,143 he was not entitled to. He was arrested in February 2009, and computers were seized from his home by police.

He pleaded guilty yesterday on the basis that he spotted the wrongful payments when preparing the accounts for family businesses and took no action to return the money.

Agreeing to adjourn sentence for 12 weeks, Judge Burn told the court: “It has to be in the public interest if the Primary Care Trust’s losses can be made good.”

He stressed that would be “a powerful factor” in determining the sort of sentence Khan would receive.

The judge said he would allow a discussion at the next hearing as to whether a custodial sentence could be suspended.

He said the question of paying costs of the case would also be addressed.

Judge Burn said that hearing would probably take place in early May but it would be fixed to suit the barristers in the case.

He extended Khan’s unconditional bail until the sentencing date.