Pokies cash grab ‘costs thief $750’

KIM WATERS
A man who helped himself to “a handful” of cash from a hotel’s till was an “opportunistic” criminal, Geelong Magistrates Court heard this week.
Brett Lamont pleaded guilty to attempted theft for his bid to steal money from North Geelong’s Sphinx Hotel in November.
Leading Senior Constable Glenn Abbott said Lamont had been playing the hotel’s pokies early in the morning before grabbing “a handful of notes” from an unattended cashier’s desk.
A staff member slapped Lamont on the back, told him to return the money and ordered him to leave, the court heard.
Lamont’s lawyer, Shane Baulkin, said his client had been “coming to these courts for a long time”.
Lamont was “waiting for change” to continue playing the pokies when he grabbed the cash.
Mr Baulkin said the bungled theft left “nobody out of pocket”.
Magistrate Stephen Myall convicted and fined Lamont $750.