'Cash Cage' Supervisor Pleads Guilty in Sands Theft

A "cash cage" supervisor at the Sands Casino Resort Bethlehem pleaded guilty Monday to charges he stole $10,000 from his employer.

Online court records show Jesus Gonzalez-Torres, 24, of Freemansburg pleaded guilty to theft by unlawful taking in a court session before Northampton County Judge F.P. Kimberly McFadden. A charge of receiving stolen property was withdrawn.

McFadden scheduled sentencing for March 7. Gonzalez-Torres, of 626A Ramblewood Lane, remained free on $20,000 unsecured bail.

A previous Patch story explained that the "cash cage" is the center of cash storage and distribution at the Sands Casino on Bethlehem's South Side. The story refers to a criminal complaint that says:

--Gonzalez-Torres admitted to state police that he snuck several hundred dollars a day—three or four times a week—out of the cage over the course of 13 months, beginning in March 2012.

--The state police Bureau of Gaming Enforcement began its investigation into Gonzalez-Torres last April 15 after casino surveillance personnel reported that he was stealing cash, troopers said.

--Casino surveillance employees began reviewing recorded video of Gonzalez-Torres at work after a fellow employee alerted them that he may be stealing. They then found, through the investigation, one alleged theft committed on April 13. At a little before 11 a.m. on that day, an employee brought $780 to the cage from a voucher redemption unit where customers get vouchers for cash. Gonzalez-Torres accepted the cash and brought it to a more private cashier window area.

--He put the money on the counter and began to fill out necessary paperwork indicating how much money he had received. He then removed some of the bills from the stack and put them into what appeared to be a sticky note pad. He took the pad with the money and put it into a drawer, which casino personnel said is not proper procedure.

--Further investigation by Sands surveillance personnel revealed that the paperwork Gonzalez-Torres filled out showed that he had received $80, not $780.

--Troopers interviewed Gonzalez-Torres on April 16, and he admitted to stealing the $700 and explained his pattern of stealing a few hundred dollars a day out of the cage—three or four times a week—over 13 months. He estimated that he took about $10,000 total.

Prosecuting the case is assistant district attorney Sandra McClure. Representing Gonzalez-Torres is Easton attorney Charles Gordon.