A SUPERMARKET worker helped herself to money from her employer’s till.
Laura Greener, 22, faked returns and pocketed cash at the end of her shifts at Lidl in Roker, Sunderland.
Greener, who lives with her partner’s grandmother, in Stansfield Street, Roker, managed to steal more than £500 between October 31 and November 10 last year.
She pleaded guilty to one offence of theft at Sunderland Magistrates’ Court.
Prosecutor Liam O’Brien told the court: “Effectively she was fiddling the till and running transactions through for refunds and pocketing the money for those transactions at the end of the shift.
“The allegation is she stole a total of £509.83.
“None of that was recovered, so there was an application for compensation in that amount.”
Mr O’Brien added that Greener had no convictions, but received a caution for theft in 2009.
Defence solicitor Kate Meek said Greener, who had worked in retail all of her adult life, now faced a life without work.
“She will be extremely lucky if she ever gets another job, because this will be declared, if any future employer ever trusts her again,” she said.
Greener, who had been employed by Lidl for about 18 months, took sick leave after an operation.
She returned to work too soon, Miss Meek said, which left her depressed.
The checkout worker also claimed she was being bullied.
Miss Meek said: “I can only imagine that she was feeling so tired and fed-up that this affected her decision-making process.
“There has to be some connection between the two events.
“She was feeling pretty sore about the way she was treated, probably feeling not fit to be back to work, but back at work because she had been required to do so and made a series of foolish mistakes.”
Greener admitted what she had done in a disciplinary hearing at work, leading supermarket bosses to call in police.
She was released on conditional bail and ordered to live and sleep at her home address, not to contact prosecution witness or enter Lidl in Roker.
She will be back before magistrates today for sentencing.
Twitter: @janethejourno