IT was late on a night in September last year when the gaming attendant at the Sydney Junction Hotel messaged one of the pub's regular poker machine players.
"Make sure you have an intimidating weapon," Evie Grace wrote.
"Deleting messages now. Be safe."
Outside, an e-bike rider pulled up in the car park, the pillion passenger hopped off and replaced his helmet with a dirty blonde wig.
The plan was in place.
The e-bike rider had already paid a visit to the hotel and left a piece of duct tape across the rear door of the gaming area, ensuring it would remain unlocked from the outside.
And Grace had been providing detailed inside information for much of the night, messaging the man in the wig about how much money there was and when to strike.
"Been very busy," she messaged.
"62 in machines right now and 6 in till.
"Lots of suss c---s in tonight as well, lots of young junkies who had to be kicked out.
"That's a good thing, they will think it might be one of them."
Moments later, the man in the wig, Christopher James Barsley, 47, pushed through the back door to the gaming area and pointed a toy gun at Grace.
"Don't f---ing move," Barsley told Grace, who had collected all the cash from the poker machines and put it in a bag on top of the cash float on the gaming room bar.
Grace crouched down and, quick as a flash, Barsley snatched up the bag, fled through the same door and escaped on the back of the e-bike.
In total, he stole $73,000, about half of which was later recovered from a Newcastle West storage facility.
And the woman who had just texted the armed man in the wig "ready", was now radioing staff to say "we've been robbed".
Details of the inside job armed robbery at the Sydney Junction Hotel in the early hours of September 12 last year can now be revealed after Grace, Barsley and the e-bike getaway rider Terrence Richard Hardy all pleaded guilty to aggravated break-and-enter in Newcastle Local Court on Wednesday.
Barsley and Hardy remain behind bars, while Grace fought off an application by prosecutors to have her detained ahead of sentencing in Newcastle District Court.
All three will next appear in court on September 10 to get a sentence date.
Grace had worked at the hotel in Beaumont Street for about 15 months and knew Barsley as one of the regular poker machine players.
The pair went to a club at Mayfield and gambled together the day before the hotel was "robbed", according to an agreed statement of facts.
A detailed text message exchange reveals the pair had conspired to steal the poker machine proceeds from the hotel at closing time and had used Hardy to keep the back door open and act as a getaway rider.
"Hey babe it's Chris, you reckon we good for tonight," Barsley wrote on September 11.
Grace replied, telling Barsley he needed to "tape the door latch" and with a figure of how much money was in the poker machines.
About 12.50am, Grace dimmed the exit signs near the back door to the gaming room and Hardy arrived and taped across the door.
He then rode to a storage facility and picked up Barsley before the pair returned to the hotel on the e-bike.
Meanwhile, Barsley and Grace had been in constant contact about how the plan was progressing.
"Make sure you let me know when you about to put bag on till tray," Barsley wrote.
"Make sure I can get it from this side of bench."
Grace told him about the suspicious punters at the pub and Barsley worried that someone was onto them.
"No one's on to anything hun," she replied.
Then, later on, she told him to ensure he had a weapon that would look intimidating for anyone watching the cameras.
"Deleting messages now," she wrote.
"65 plus all notes from till.
"Blue bag sits on top of the till.
"Going to pee then start machines.
"Be safe.
"Hope door worked, can't check it.
"Will give blank text when ready."
At 3.15am, Grace deleted numerous text messages between her and Barsley.
At 3.26am, Hardy and Barsley arrived on the e-bike and Barsley put on the wig.
At 3.34am, Grace put the bag containing the poker machine proceeds on top of the cash float and texted "ready".
Two minutes later, Barsley crossed the car park with the toy gun.
A few minutes after, he emerged again and headed off to the storage facility to change clothes.
The police were called and looked at the CCTV from the hotel before interviewing Grace.
She said she was positive the back door had locked and said she didn't recognise the voice of the person who pointed the gun at her.
The pair were arrested a few weeks later and Grace denied having any knowledge that Barsley was going to come into the hotel with a gun and steal the money.
She was shown the text messages and maintained she did not think Barsley was going to go through with it.
But she pleaded guilty to aggravated break-and-enter on Wednesday and admitted she was in on the "armed robbery".
Grace remains on bail while Barsley and Hardy have been behind bars since September 26 and November 4, respectively.
