California: Fast-Food Manager Pleads No Contest; DA Says He Gambled Away $232,000
- A former manager of a Jack in the Box restaurant in Redwood City, California, has pleaded no contest to embezzling about $232,000 in restaurant cash.
- Juan Jose Antonio Vanegas, 30, of Redwood City, entered the plea to felony embezzlement on Tuesday, Oct.
- Vanegas managed the Jack in the Box at 986 Woodside Road, according to prosecutors.
A former manager of a Jack in the Box restaurant in Redwood City, California, has pleaded no contest to embezzling about $232,000 in restaurant cash. The San Mateo County District Attorney’s Office says he spent all of it on a gambling problem.
Juan Jose Antonio Vanegas, 30, of Redwood City, entered the plea to felony embezzlement on Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2026, KRON4 reported, citing the DA’s office. He also admitted an enhancement allegation that he took more than $200,000.
120 deposits that never reached the bank
Vanegas managed the Jack in the Box at 986 Woodside Road, according to prosecutors. Between Jan. 1, 2025, and Aug. 1, 2025, he failed to make 120 deposits of restaurant income to the bank and kept the money instead, the DA’s office said.
The DA’s office put the total loss at $232,282, according to KRON4. The San Mateo Daily Journal, also citing District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe’s office, reported the amount as $232,280.
An accountant caught it. “The embezzlement was discovered by the business accountant who reported it to the area general manager,” prosecutors wrote, according to KRON4. They added: “(Vanegas) spent all of the money on a gambling problem.”
Neither report says what kind of gambling was involved or where it took place.
What a no-contest plea means in California
A no-contest plea is also called nolo contendere. Under California Penal Code section 1016, a court must make sure the defendant understands that such a plea “shall be considered the same as a plea of guilty” and that, after it, “the court shall find the defendant guilty.” For a felony, the law says, the plea’s legal effect “shall be the same as that of a plea of guilty for all purposes.”
The deal and what happens next
The plea was conditioned on Vanegas receiving no state prison time and up to one year in county jail, according to KRON4. He remains out of custody on his own recognizance, meaning he was released without having to post bail.
He is due back in court for sentencing on Dec. 10, 2026.
Related: West Virginia: Animal Clinic Manager Admits Stealing $624,600, Says He Lost It All to Gambling.
Featured image: The San Mateo County Hall of Justice in Redwood City, California, which houses the county’s Superior Court, in 2020. Photo: mliu92 / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0)
