Pizza Hut Manager Steals $8,000 From Store Over Several Months: New Lenox PD

NEW LENOX, IL — The manager of a Pizza Hut location in New Lenox confessed to the owner and police that he had been stealing cash from the store for months—amassing to nearly $8,000, according to New Lenox police reports.

Police were called to Pizza Hut, 525 W. Lincoln Highway, on July 10, after the owner called to report a theft. The owner told police that the company's corporate office had informed them that approximately $10,000 was missing from the location.

The owner told police they questioned the manager—identified as James Ballantine, 56, of Joliet—who allegedly confessed to pocketing the store's daily deposits. Ballantine later told police he'd been keeping the money for himself since February.

Police were able to obtain the deposit slips from that timeframe and determined Ballantine took a total of $7,967.64 from the store.

Ballantine was taken into custody and transported to the New Lenox Police Department. He was charged with felony theft, processed and released.