Jeremy Svoronos: Batemans Bay man pleads guilty to stealing from Domino’s store

A South Coast man who offered to help his former employer at a Domino’s Pizza store during a busy night shift has admitted in court to helping steal $1500 from cash drawers and the store safe.

A seemingly innocuous offer by three former employees of a South Coast Domino’s Pizza store has landed one of the men in court after the trio allegedly made off with more than $1000 in cash, lifted from register tills and the store safe.

Jeremy Svoronos pleaded guilty to larceny at Batemans Bay Local Court after helping steal $1500 from the town’s pizza store on March 22.

The 24-year-old was with two other former employees police allege were involved in the theft when they offered to help the store’s assistant manager, who was busy due to a lack of staff at the time.

Trusting the trio, the manager allowed them to help, according to agreed police facts.

“About 9.20pm, Svoronos and one of the co-accused enter the store and Svoronos is seen standing with his back up against the cash register and till drawer. Whilst Svoronos does this, the co-accused appears to distract the witness with boisterous actions,” the documents state.

“Svoronos is observed to sneakily pull out the till drawer and remove cash from the till, placing it in his pockets.”

Later that evening, Svoronos used the safe keys to open the store’s safe, located under the front counter.

“Svoronos opens the safe and removes large amounts of cash, before shutting the door and walking away,” the documents state.

“Moments later, he returns to the till, opens it, and removes more cash, before closing it and walking away.”

Police allege over the course of one hour, the three men are captured on CCTV taking cash from driver cash-bags located under the front counter, and notes and gold coins from cash drawer tills, as well as attempting to open the cash drop-safe.

The men are seen on the CCTV footage showing the money they have taken to one another on multiple instances, police allege.

Shortly before 10pm, the manager realises there is cash missing when counting the drawers and contacts the owner, police allege.

The trio leave shortly thereafter.

During sentencing at Batemans Bay Local Court on Monday, solicitor Adam Sumback said Svoronos was remorseful for the theft.

“He has changed his ways,” Mr Sumbak said.

“If he continues, he knows what is going to happen.”

In sentencing, magistrate David O’Connor lambasted Svoronos, who is currently employed at the Stingray restaurant in Batemans Bay and is already serving a community corrections order for similar offences carried out in April.

“It’s a despicable crime to steal from your employer, and this is what you have done,” he said.

“Your record shows prior crimes of dishonesty, including one – that it’s concerning me – that you were sentenced to a two year community corrections order for, imposed by this court on June 20, relating to offences from April 15.

“These current offences from March predate that. Though, the argument might be that if the court was aware of this matter when it dealt with the others, it might have been dealt with otherwise.”

Svoronos was ordered to pay $500 in compensation to Dominos, with the remaining $1000 to be paid for by the co-accused’s.

He will serve a two year CCO concurrent with his prior sentence.

Pleas have not been entered for one of the co-accused, while Mr Sumbak told the court the other had not yet been contacted by police.