Ex-worker charged in $74G LI Walmart theft

Talk about an illegal procedure.

Nassau County police on Friday said they had arrested a former Uniondale High football captain for allegedly stealing about $74,000 in cash from a Walmart in Uniondale.

Officials said Theophalious C. Moore, 21, a former employee at the Jerusalem Avenue store, confessed that he went into a bathroom, hid on a toilet bowl, climbed into the ceiling through a loose tile, cut through Sheetrock, shimmied down, stuffed cash and coins from the money room into his knapsack, and made his getaway through the men's apparel department.

He was identified on surveillance video by store officials as the burglar, police said.

They said Moore later confessed to Det. Martin Helmke, who charged him with third-degree burglary and second-degree grand larceny in the Wednesday night theft.

Nassau County prosecutor Katie Breazier said, Moore stole about $74,000, which police recovered. Judge David McAndrews of First District Court in Hempstead ordered Moore jailed on $50,000 bond or $25,000 cash bail.

Moore, a safety/wide receiver on the Uniondale Knights, was a senior in 2007. He had worked for Walmart for 2 1/2 years. He told police that he was furious after Walmart demoted him in February. He quit last month and got a job as a security guard at Metro One Security of Westbury.

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Walmart spokesman Dan Fogleman said Friday that Moore had last worked at the customer service desk and that the stores have an open-door policy regarding employee disputes.

"It's disappointing to see this type of situation occur," Fogleman said.

In a five-page confession to police, Moore said: "When they demoted me I started thinking about how I could get the store back."

So on Wednesday night, he walked to the store with yellow and black gloves and a pair of goggles, according to his confession.

After the theft, he hid the money, made plans to go to Virginia and went shopping in Brooklyn, according to the confession. Police searching for Moore visited his grandfather, who urged his grandson to surrender. Moore then turned himself in at the First Precinct in Baldwin on Thursday.

Moore's high school classmate Jean August came to court on Friday.

August, 21, said his friend had money troubles, including a car transmission badly in need of repair.

"He has bills to pay," August said. "He has a car to get fixed."

August added: "He wanted to actually be in the NFL. But he got injured, so that ruined his chances."

With William Murphy