ATM technician arrested for $71,000 theft

By Erik Sanzenbach
St. Tammany News
Published on Wednesday, March 3, 2010 12:29 AM CST

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Louisiana State Police detectives with Troop L have arrested a former technician who repaired automatic teller machines, and allegedly stole over $71,000 in a 10-month period in both St. Tammany and Tangipahoa parishes.

Troop L spokesman Trooper Nick Manale said the investigation began in October 2009 when detectives got a complaint about missing money in an ATM. Investigators were able to link the robberies to Shayne Thomas, 28, who Manale believes lives in Tangipahoa Parish. Detectives said from December 2008 and July 2009, Thomas allegedly stole $71,000 from ATMs he was repairing in both parishes.

Thomas was charged with 10 counts of theft over $500 in St. Tammany Parish and 19 counts of theft over $500 in Tangipahoa Parish.

Manale said Thomas was arrested without incident and after questioning confessed to the ATM thefts. Thomas was booked into the St. Tammany Parish Jail, where he bonded out, and then was taken to the Tangipahoa Parish Jail where he was also booked.

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Comments

1 comment(s)

Oceolus wrote on Mar 3, 2010 1:08 PM:

" This case is another incident that could lead to an error in sentencing resulting a loophole in state criminal law for folks who commit multiple crimes resulting from the same plot and plan.
If this gentleman is proven guilty on 29 counts, law says that all sentences arriving from this activity must be concurrent, even if parish lines were crossed. Though the judge may give him the maximum sentence allowed for one act of theft over $500, he will serve only that time on all 29 counts of theft, i.e., 29 concurrent sentences. "

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