KEY POINTS:
A security guard forced to resign after stealing $4000 from ATM machines then wore his old uniform and a home-made ID badge to thieve a further $72,000 from the same bank.
Solomon Oh Hunia told police he gambled the $76,000 away at SkyCity casino.
He has since pleaded
guilty to eight counts of theft while working as an Armourguard security officer, and four burglary charges after he left the company.
The 34-year-old was caught after an internal investigation found he took a total of $4270 over eight occasions when he was supposed to transfer cash from National Bank ATMs in South Auckland.
After he resigned, Hunia returned to a money machine in Great South Rd wearing his old uniform, unlocked the ATM combination locks and stole $72,000 in three daring raids last January.
"In order to appear official, he fixed a crudely made ADT security badge to his shirt front," the police summary of facts says.
Hunia told police he took the money because he had a gambling addiction and was "desperate for cash". He had never appeared before the courts before.
Hunia is due to be sentenced in December.
His lawyer, Mark Manhire, said Hunia was sorry for what he did.
"What is evident more than anything else is the crushing and destructive effect that gambling, as with any addiction, can have on people and their families," Manhire said.
Armourguard did not return phone calls.
Hunia is the most recent in a string of security guards caught stealing from the clients they are supposed to protect.
Emma Havea, a Chubb security guard, pleaded guilty last month to stealing $55,900 in cash from a client bank to feed her gambling addiction.
The 28-year-old married mother had stolen the KiwiBank cash over five months while shifting money boxes in armoured cars.
Havea would take between $300 to $1000 up to three times a week while alone in the back of the Chubb trucks, either before or after emptying the cash boxes from KiwiBank ATMs.
She is the second Chubb guard to be charged with theft after an internal investigation.
Hamish Edward Wilson faces charges of stealing $780 from ASB Bank in August, and possession of cannabis, and is due to appear in court tomorrow.
Two female security guards suspected of being involved are on the run from police. The Herald on Sunday understands the total sum of money taken was between $150,000 and $200,000.
