An employee at the Walmart at Buffalo Ridge Plaza in The Villages has been arrested on 37 counts of theft.
Dominic Justice Dera, 21, of Leesburg, stole merchandise between Dec. 9 and April 7, according to an arrest report from the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office.
Dera would go on break and then take merchandise to the self-checkout lane. He would pretend to scan the merchandise, but would put his hand over the barcode so it would not scan. When he finished scanning the items, he would insert a plastic card to pretend he was paying. However, because none of the items had been scanned, no money was taken from his card. All of the purchases were made between the hours of 1 and 3 a.m., a time at which the store is closed and only employees can use the self-checkout lanes. All of the incidents were captured on video surveillance. The total value of the items stolen was $490.
Dera was taken into custody on Thursday and booked at the Sumter County Detention Center. He was released after posting $2,000 bond.