Lecherous equity boss forced to pay £100k to a female executive he nicknamed 'candy toes' goes bankrupt BEFORE handing over compensation

Published: 16:03, 24 May 2026 | Updated: 16:03, 24 May 2026 A company director has been declared bankrupt by a court following a campaign by a female executive who successfully sued him for £100,000 when he sexually harassed her. Sex pest Marc Bandemer, 61, has been bankrupted after a legal campaign fronted by Louise Crabtree, who was subjected to a year-long campaign of harassment and said she felt like she was being 'groomed'. The mother of three, 51, said that his repeated advancements left her so traumatised that she now struggles to work with men. Senior executive Ms Crabtree said South African-born Mr Bandemer treated her like his 'property' as he openly called her his 'second wife' and physically pulled her onto his lap in front of her family and partner. Mr Bandemer called her 'naughty', 'brat' and 'girl', ogled her body, bought her a 'commitment' ring, confessed his love for her, and offered to buy them a 'love nest' in Cyprus. Ms Crabtree was awarded £99,214 in compensation in 2024, but after not receiving all her fees she brought insolvency proceedings against him. Now, thanks to her efforts, Ms Crabtree has been victorious at Reading County Court and Mr Bandemer has been declared bankrupt. Despite accepting that she might not receive the entirety of her compensation, Ms Crabtree is celebrating due to the 'justice' she has received. Louise Crabtree was subjected to a year-long campaign of harassment and said she felt like she was being 'groomed' by her boss who made inappropriate sexual comments towards her  Ms Crabtree's former boss Marc Bandemer was ordered to pay her £100,000 in compensation after calling her 'naughty', 'brat' and 'girl', ogled her body, and confessed his love for her She says she hopes the case 'inspired other women to speak up' against sexual harassment. Ms Crabtree had successfully sued Mr Bandemer and his company Integer Wealth Global for sexual harassment after she was 'ousted' from her £124,000-a-year job. It was heard after one month of joining the Hampshire-based company in April 2021 Mr Bandemer began subjecting her to degrading sexist comments that 'crossed the boundary'. He began saying inappropriate things, often in front of clients, calling her 'candy toes' and saying: 'Don't you think she's gorgeous?' Salary increases left her feeling 'groomed', she said. The harassment continued for months, with Ms Crabtree feeling 'trapped' as she didn't want to lose her job, until she started to put her foot down and he froze her out the company in May 2022. Ms Crabtree, from Romsey, Hants, told the 2024 tribunal: 'The impact on my mental and physical health due to the sexual harassment as well as the stress of him controlling me through not paying my salary consistently impacts me to this day. 'His hostility towards me when I didn't do it as he said, or when I tried to address issues such as my salary, his behaviour, his comment or the fear and intimidation he inflicted when he demoted me has left me scarred and I struggle to deal with his treatment of me. 'His treatment of me has impacted my life financially, mentally and physically and will take me a long time to fully recover or regain trust if I decide to work for a company again. 'I feel I was groomed by [Mr Bandemer] and feel angry at myself for allowing it to happen. 'Following my termination... the fear of suddenly having no income and them not even offering me notice pay or holiday pay sent me into a panic. 'I initially attempted to have interviews with other prospective employers, but both were male, and I mentally felt I couldn't work in an environment where my boss was male. 'This wasn't one isolated incident or a few but a constant emotional and physical rollercoaster of stress and anxiety that I had to and still endure. 'No one can possibly understand the daily turmoil I was under even when seeing my apparent light-hearted reactions or dismissal of his advances which were a way of survival for me.' She won her employment tribunal case against him in 2024 and was awarded £100,000 - but two years later she has still only received about half of the fee. Mr Bandemer got law firm Herrington Carmichael involved in the case but after he failed to pay them they joined Ms Crabtree's petition to have him declared insolvent. They have now successfully brought insolvency proceedings against the Hampshire-based business owner at Reading County Court, Berks. Following the success, Ms Crabtree said: 'This has been a long, time-consuming process for me. 'He has personally been made bankrupt and the next process will be the insolvency proceedings. 'He only started paying when the bailiffs knocked on the door and they were going into the property and that was in June 2024. 'He started paying money and he had paid about half of the £100,000 when it stopped then the bailiffs phoned him and he said would pay in November 2024 and then he disappeared again. The harassment continued for months, with Ms Crabtree feeling 'trapped' as she didn't want to lose her job, until she put her foot down and he froze her out the company in May 2022 Ms Crabtree said Mr Bandemer treated her like his 'property' as he openly called her his 'second wife' and physically pulled her onto his lap in front of her family and partner 'He hid in his flat and would not answer the door. From then he said he lived in Cyprus but I know he lives in his flat in Basingstoke. 'I spent all of 2025 dealing with the issue. Thankfully Herrington Carmichael came on the scene in 2025. He employed them to go against me and reach a settlement. 'He didn't pay Herrington Carmichael and they clearly didn't like that and they said they would sort the petition against him. I think he owes them around £25,000. 'I am really grateful for them taking it on but it shows how much it costs to get justice.' Ms Crabtree said that Mr Bandemer now owes her around £60,000 in compensation and legal fees - and even claims that he owes significantly more to around 20 others. She said: 'I think it is just going to keep going and going. There are a lot of people who he owes money to. 'It is not going to end well for him and I think there is more to this story. 'However you are only bankrupt for a year and so I'm sure he'll try and get out of it in some way. 'He has tried slandering my name but everything I have ever said has been based on facts and evidence. 'He said that I am only out to ruin his name and his career. But I think he didn't need any help with that.' Ms Crabtree said that she has accepted at this point that she is not going to receive her full compensation but for her, it is only about seeking justice. She said: 'I pretty much know at this point that I am not going to get paid. 'I hope the outcome of the hearing gives confidence to others with similar concerns to seek advice and pursue appropriate action. 'I hope this hearing encourages potential victims to speak out about this kind of behaviour, particularly at a time when many businesses - especially self-employed people and those working in consultancy or the service industry - are vulnerable to being exploited. 'This was never only about recovering the money owed. It was about securing justice and helping to prevent anyone else from being harmed.' Mother-of-three Ms Crabtree's former boss has been declared bankrupt - before she received all of her compensation for bombarding her with the inappropriate text messages  Following the two-year legal battle, Ms Crabtree said: 'It is a relief to have that closure but it has been pretty stressful. 'It has impacted me, my work and my kids. 'I did it for me but I also did it for all the other people in that situation. It has hopefully put a stop to him. I hope it shows others that the cases are winnable. 'Hopefully this case has shown awareness of sexual harassment in the workplace and hopefully inspired other women to speak up against it.' No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. 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