MoreyUnit | Maricopa County detention officer arrested in theft case

A Maricopa County sheriff's detention officer was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of felony theft, authorities said.

Sgt. Jason Vance, 31, told detectives during an interview that he stole $7,000 in cash from a safe at Lower Buckeye Jail while on duty Monday night, officials said.

Jail supervisors noticed that a large sum of money was missing from the safe Monday after they conducted a routine cash count at the end of their shift at 8:30 p.m., according to court records. The records show the missing money was previously accounted for earlier that morning during another check at 9 a.m.

The missing money included three bundles of $100 bills worth $2,000 each and one bundle of $50 bills worth $1,000, court records show.

Surveillance video led investigators to suspect Vance. Detectives said it was clear that Vance knew he was on surveillance because he tried to hide his actions when he opened the safe around 2:15 p.m.

Records state Vance removed the cash from the safe and placed it on a desk outside the surveillance camera's view.

According to the records, investigators found Vance's actions suspicious because "two people are normally present to deal with money in the safe" and all interactions with the money are logged. However, investigators did not find any entry stating Vance accessed the safe.

Vance told detectives he was remorseful. He said he took the money for financial reasons because his car was repossessed earlier in the day and the finance company estimated the cost to be $7,000.

Vance believed the bundles were worth $8,000, but court records state he received 17 cents in change after retrieving his car.