An Wisconsin woman accused of stealing thousands of dollars worth of scratch-off lottery tickets when she worked at Denny's Super Valu in Algoma has been bound over for trial.
Mary Jo (Jody) DeNamur, 44, waived her right to a preliminary hearing Thursday in Kewaunee County Circuit Court. She is charged with five felony theft counts and one misdemeanor charge.
DeNamur's attorney, Jeffrey Jazgar, said his client agreed to waive the hearing in exchange for a preliminary plea offer from the district attorney's office.
Jazgar said the offer included a conviction on one count of felony theft with five years of probation, restitution in an amount to be determined, an alcohol and other drug abuse assessment and follow through, along with a six-month jail sentence imposed and stayed.
But DeNamur didn't enter a plea on any of the charges. Jazgar said he plans on submitting a motion to dismiss the multiple charges his client faces by arguing they are duplicative.
Court records state DeNamur, who was employed at Denny's from 1997 until being fired in April 2002, worked primarily at the service center where lottery tickets were purchased and redeemed. Her termination allegedly involved so-called "sweetheart checking," in which only a portion of the items purchased are rung up on the cash register.
According to the court complaint, an agent with the state Division of Criminal Investigation discovered Denny's lost more than $150,000 on lottery sales from 1998 to April 2002, while the store's ticket sales became profitable after DeNamur was fired.
DCI agent Loreen Glaman concluded DeNamur was the only person with the opportunity, motive and means to carry out the ticket thefts.
On average, the DCI's investigation found there were more lottery tickets redeemed at Denny's on days DeNamur worked in 2002 than when she was off, while winning tickets obtained from the store were redeemed elsewhere when she wasn't working.
DeNamur remains free on a $25,000 surety bond. She is scheduled back in court on Jan. 29 for an arraignment to enter a plea.
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