Suspicion of theft **Cleared**

[Marco73]

Hello Caggers

I work one day a week (Saturdays) for an engraver within a department store. Although the engraver is situated within the store, he is still independent.

On Wednesday 14th November I was notified by my employer that I was to attend a meeting regarding a till discrepancy of £760 which happened on Saturday 10th November.

I attended the meeting and in a nutshell I was told that I was one of three that were under suspicion.

I know that it wasn't me who stole the money but I am still on edge and thinking "what if".

The interviewing manager said that I made the most transactions that day and so was in more of a position to take the money (which I understand). My last transaction was at 4.02pm that Saturday and the manager claims that she was notified of the missing money between my last transaction and 5.00pm. For someone to notice that the money was missing the till drawer would have to be opened and for the drawer to be opened a transaction has to take place so surely another transaction had to have taken place after my last one so the manager is trying to rile me right?. I asked why the CCTV had not been viewed but the manager said it will be in time. Now, to save bringing innocent people into the frame, would it not be right to view the CCTV before placing people under suspicion? I did not sleep a wink until the very early hours last night because it was rolling round my mind. Lots of things are going round my mind. What if the CCTV proves inconclusive? What if I am being stitched up? Why would someone do this? I shouldn't be feeling this way. Do I have any legal right to request the CCTV footage (this would just be for peace of mind aswell as seeing who the culprit is)

I am a bag of nerves!

Thank you in advance for any help.

Mark

[honeybee13]

Hello there.

 

The guys will be able to help you, I'm sure. Please bear with us until they're able to get here, hopefully this evening.

 

My best, HB

[Marco73]

Thanx HB

My best, HB

[becky2585]

Hi

 

I know it's easy to say this, but try not to worry at this stage. If you're innocent and there's CCTV, there's no danger of you beng falsely accused.

 

How long have you worked there?

 

I would insist on the CCTV being reviewed, and if it isn't, the process would be rather unfair given that it would show who was guilty (I presume)!

[altobelli]

Hi Marco

 

I agree with Becky, insist on the CCTV being reviewed. What are the average daily takings, would £760 missing be immediately noticeable to anyone opening the till? Also, what transactions were done between 4.02 and 5pm? What was the exact time the manager was notified of the missing money?

[markl1987]

Hello

 

I hope you can have the CCTV reviewed very soon and this will provide the answers to where the money has gone.

 

You have said that you had processed a lot of transactions that day, do you recall perhaps any faults with the till? Its a very large amount of money to be missing and £760 in cash would be quite a lump for someone to have in a pocket or hidden away so there could have been a technical issue.

 

If not down to a technical issue, It almost sounds like someone has taken a bundle of notes and at that value possibly the £10 or £20 (as said by altobelli it would be very noticeable when the cash drawer was opened) which hopefully will be visible on the CCTV system and will show the real culprit

[Marco73]

I have no idea of the daily takings as I never cash up. I have worked there for 18 months and work from 10.30am-5.30pm on Saturdays. The manager said that that my transaction at 4.02pm was the last but like I said in my opening post, there would have to have been at least one more transaction after mine for someone to have noticed that there was money missing. The manager said that she was notified at some time between my transaction at 4.02pm and 5.00pm. The store closes at 8.00pm and so this would be the time when the till is cashed up I assume. I am a bit nervy requesting particulars like CCTV footage and exact times as this may seem to be trying to dig my way out of it. Although I am innocent I think it is wrong of them to suspect me without first viewing the CCTV. When a transaction is taking place, a camera immediately focuses on the till making the transaction. I was told this at my induction and till training. I really hope this is true which is why I am a bit nervous about it.

[markl1987]

Don't be nervy! You are being investigated for a very serious criminal offence and if you know you are innocent ask away for anything that will prove your innocence!

 

You may feel it wrong for them to suspect you but in the real world anyone with access to that till has to be a suspect, unfortunately this will feel horrible until your innocence has been proven

[Marco73]

Markl1987

 

There was one hiccup with the till i normally use (which is the till where the money went from). It was a card payment for £15 but on two occasions I got an error message and so couldn't continue. I asked another member of staff for help and my colleague cancelled the transaction. I then made the transaction on a different till.

[Marco73]

When I went into work on Saturday before my interview, I found myself looking at other colleagues and saying to myself "Is it them?". Whoever it is, they have knowingly dragged my name through the mud. During the interview I could feel my heart pounding!. It is not a nice situation to be in. I understand that it is a big amount of money to go missing but given that, I also feel that the management ought to have dealt with it in a better way other than bring in innocents without consulting CCTV first

[Sidewinder]

Having investigated many till discrepancies in the past, the vast majority come down to errors - and certainly those involving this much money. One would have to be absolutely stupid to steal that much from a till in a day anyway!

 

Never nice to be in your position, however all you can say is that you didn't do it - invite, or even insist, police involvement if they do start pointing the finger.

 

How long have you worked there?

[assisted blonde]

Could it be that the wrong amount was rung in on your last transaction? prehaps 760 was rung in instead of 7.60 or 76p ?

[Marco73]

Sidewinder.

I have worked there for 18 months

 

Assisted Blonde.

Every transaction is automatically sent to the the cash office where it is digitally recorded and I have been provided with a print out of my transactions for that day which includes; Amount tendered, time of transaction, method of payment, change given (if cash transaction). Like I said earlier, there was a hiccup with the till and the transaction was cancelled. (This was also recorded)

[markl1987]

It sounds like you're gonna have to be tough and ride it out until the CCTV is reviewed.

 

Keep your post updated though please, if you know you are innocent then the truth will out in the end

[Marco73]

Thanks to everyone for your comments. Will update as soon as.

[bedlington83]

Markl1987

 

There was one hiccup with the till i normally use (which is the till where the money went from). [...]my colleague cancelled the transaction. I then made the transaction on a different till.

What was happening at "your" till while you were worki g on a different till?

[Marco73]

What was happening at "your" till while you were worki g on a different till?

The other till that I went to was out of sight of the first till.

[altobelli]

Sorry, can I just clarify - the last transaction on the till was the one you did at 4.02? I understand this was your last transaction, but were there any other transactions done on the till between 4.02 and 5.00 by other members of staff?

 

Also, I think Sidewinder's advice about asking for or insisting on police involvement if they start finger-pointing is excellent.

[becky2585]

Sorry, can I just clarify - the last transaction on the till was the one you did at 4.02? I understand this was your last transaction, but were there any other transactions done on the till between 4.02 and 5.00 by other members of staff?

 

Also, I think Sidewinder's advice about asking for or insisting on police involvement if they start finger-pointing is excellent.

 

It's a good suggestion, but also keep in mind that the criminal burden of proof is much higher (beyond reasonable doubt) than the employers disciplinary burden (balance of probabilities). The police could exonerate everyone, but a dismissal could still be fair.

[Marco73]

Sorry, can I just clarify - the last transaction on the till was the one you did at 4.02? I understand this was your last transaction, but were there any other transactions done on the till between 4.02 and 5.00 by other members of staff?

 

Also, I think Sidewinder's advice about asking for or insisting on police involvement if they start finger-pointing is excellent.

The interviewing manager claims that my transaction at 4.02pm was the last made on that till but like I said earlier, there would have to have been a further transaction in order for the till drawer to be opened and for someone to have noticed that money was missing. On reflection, I do think the manager was testing me. I just don't believe that in a 4 hour period, there was no transactions made after my last one. Although the truth will come out in the end, I am eager to clear my name asap to prevent other members of staff casting aspersions.

I don't know if I have the right to see "All" transactions made on that particular till as well as viewing CCTV for that area? I wonder if anyone on here could clarify my position here?

[altobelli]

Hi Marco, I think you should have the right to see the transactions on that till, or at least have someone review them. You could raise the question in writing of having the till roll reviewed, it would raise questions of the employer if they refused to do this. And you're right, best to get this resolved asap, it should actually be quite straightforward for the employer to find out what happened given the cctv and availability of till rolls.

 

I guess the till would have a float in at the start of the day, then should record each transaction, so should hold a running total of how much should be in the till at a given time (float + day's receipts). The till roll would let you see whether your transaction was indeed the last one. Is there absolutely no other way of opening the till other than via a transaction?

[altobelli]

And its an important point about how the manager was notified, either the till would have to have been opened after 5.02, or someone may have taken the money earlier, waited for you to make a transaction, and then told the manager that money was missing.

 

And is the manager herself above suspicion? Would it have been physically possible for her to have taken money from the till at the end of the day

[transient]

As an aside note, does the engraver normally take £500 plus on a saturday?

[assisted blonde]

Transient that is why I questioned if it could have been incorrectly rung in as it seemed a high total for the type of business

[altobelli]

I was thinking along the same lines...