BUTLER TWP — A former employee is accused of stealing thousands of dollars from an auto parts store by making more than a dozen fake returns and pocketing the money.

Ryan M. Roth, 33, of East Butler was arraigned Thursday on a felony charge of theft. He is free on his own recognizance.

Butler Township police said they began investigating the case Aug. 8, after a manager at the Advance Auto Parts store on Route 8 north reported an employee theft.

The manager told investigators that he suspected Roth of taking the money over a four-month period in a fraudulent return scheme, according to court documents.

The defendant between April 21 and Aug. 8 allegedly made 15 bogus “cash returns” involving customer accounts selected at random on the store's computer system.

Police said he then took the “return money” — totaling $3,726.69 — from the cash register drawer.

Roth, who has since been fired, provided the store with a written statement admitting that he took the money, documents said, “to help out with his household expenses,” including rent and groceries.

He also apologized for what he did, police said, and advised that he was willing “to pay back every last penny.”

Roth's preliminary hearing is set for Nov. 1.