James Henry admits theft of nearly $50,000 from Officeworks Fyshwick

James Henry, of Bligh Park in Sydney, pleaded guilty to a theft charge at his first appearance in the ACT Magistrates Court on Tuesday.

Henry, 34, started working as a retail co-ordinator at the office supplies giant in Canberra in October 2019.

His managerial position allowed him to process refunds exceeding $200, a privilege he would ultimately abuse.

Court documents show he managed to process $49,497.64 worth of false refunds to his MasterCard, sending those funds to his Commonwealth Bank account, between February 2021 and March 2022.

Henry was forced during this time to put his plot on hold for two months, while the store was closed because of the COVID-19 lockdown.

His scheme was eventually scuppered by the Fyshwick store's business manager, who discovered anomalies during a refund stocktake.

She reviewed CCTV footage, which showed Henry processing a bogus $817 refund.

As a result, Henry was suspended and a loss prevention manager was tasked with investigating the full extent of his wrongdoing.

It was not difficult to discover, with most of Henry's offending occurring while he was logged in to the store's point of sale system or involving refunds approved under his own authority.

At a meeting with an area manager in April 2022, Henry admitted his actions were "contrary to Officeworks policy".

He accepted responsibility and, when asked to explain why he should not be sacked, wrote a letter attributing his conduct to ongoing mental health issues and financial stress.

In the letter, he also offered to repay Officeworks.

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When Henry subsequently attended a second meeting, his employment was terminated.

The matter was reported to police in June 2022.

According to the agreed facts, Officeworks is seeking compensation for the full amount stolen.

"[Henry]'s actions were out of line with Officeworks' refund policy and he was at no time authorised to make direct refund payments to his own bank account," the facts state.

"Such an action was explicitly prohibited by Officeworks Fyshwick's standing orders."

Following the entry of Henry's guilty plea on Tuesday, magistrate Glenn Theakston committed him to the ACT Supreme Court to be sentenced.

Mr Theakston also placed Henry on bail ahead of his case going before a registrar, who will set a sentencing date, next week.

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