Asda till worker stole cash to pay phone bills

A till operator at a Wolverhampton supermarket who stole more than £1,000 to help pay his mobile phone bills will only pay back a fraction of the money he took.

Stuart Lockley, aged 22, swiped cash from the till at Asda, on Sir Jack Hayward Way, over three weeks before store bosses launched an internal probe into missing balances.

Mr Roger Bleazard, prosecuting, told Wolverhampton Magistrates Court yesterday: "It was always his till that was short of money."

Store security staff were informed after bosses matched up Lockley's till operator codes with cash discrepancies. They trained the store's CCTV on him which, Mr Bleazard said, showed him slipping money from the register using "slight of hand."

"He made a full and frank admission and said he had been taking the money for three weeks," Mr Bleazard added.

"Initially to pay a phone bill for which he had final demands, and then carried on taking.

"He thought the amount taken was between £350 and £450 but he couldn't be sure. Auditing of his till showed more than £1,000."

The court heard Lockley tested positive for cocaine in a drugs test taken by police before the case, which he blamed on taking co-codamol for a painful gum problem.

Lockley, who lives with his mother at Elston Hall Lane, Bushbury, started work at the supermarket in November last year.

He has now lost his job and is planning to sign up for job seekers' allowance.

Defending, Mr Ravi Dev said Lockley left school with A-levels and held a £27,000-a-year job before losing the position due to the recession.

"He started work after his A-levels to support the family budget," Mr Dev added.

Lockley admitted one charge of theft.

Chairman of the bench Mr Geoff Hodge told Lockley: "The main issue here is the breach of trust."

He was ordered to carry out 60 hours of unpaid work and pay back £250. No costs were awarded for the prosecution's case.