A 24-year-old Oklahoma man who was working for Fed-Ex here in Kansas at one time and found “guilty” by Judge Tim Chambers for a charge of felony theft was granted 24-months probation Friday with an underlying sentence of 12-months.
Ryan Burgett was convicted for snatching a bank bag from the backroom of Heartland Outdoors in South Hutchinson while delivering packages to the store.
The manager, Roger Theede had counted the money and checks from sales at the store back on November 15, 2011. He apparently placed 20-thousand plus dollars and over 8-thousand dollars in checks in a bank bag. He had placed the bag on some live traps in the backroom, while he talked to a friend. Once the friend left, Theede saw it was still there. He then went to the front of the store and thats when Burgett made delivery of several packages to the back room. After that, the bank bag was gone.
Theede and three other employees were in the store with him at the time, but he eliminated them as suspects saying he had been observant of what they were doing and none went to the backroom.
Burgett waived his right to jury trial deciding instead of having a bench trial in front of Judge Chambers. Once testimony and arguments were complete, he was found “guilty.”
He was also ordered to pay restitution in the case for over 29-thousand dollars.