A Butler County man has been arrested for stealing nearly $80,000 from his employer.

Mack Lee, 22, was arrested and charged with theft or property, first degree, after stealing $79,135 from Shoe Show during a 19-month period beginning in August of 2011.

“People would come in to buy shoes and he’d pocket the money,” said Lt. Justin Lovvorn of the Greenville Police Department. “He told us that he’d sell an average of six pair of shoes a week at $60 a pair and keep the money.”

In 2012, Lee began faking returns, according to Lovvorn.

“After a while he figured out he could fake a return and he’d make a receipt for shoes that had never been returned and take money from the cash register for a refund and keep the money,” Lovvorn said.

Shoe Show learned of the theft from video cameras placed in the store. Store officials then fired Lee with the understanding that he would pay back the money he had stolen.

According to Lovvorn, Lee moved and changed his phone number following the agreement, so store officials contacted the GPD.

“Sgt. (Kenneth) Hadley was able to locate (Lee) and we got a confession out of him,” Lovvorn said.