hotels once demanded that an unsuspecting assistant manager give her the key to a cash-filled deposit bag when the general manager was out of the office, a Supreme Court jury heard yesterday.

Ms Carolann Terceira, a former Horizons Ltd. employee who now owns her own animal feed company, testified that Joanne Elizabeth Fubler once asked her for the key to a bank deposit bag she was picking up from Terceira at the Newstead Hotel.

Terceira, the hotel's assistant manager at the time, said the locked deposit bags were normally supplied to Fubler by former Newstead general manager Brendan Ingham.

She added that Fubler, who worked as an accounts clerk for the parent company, had implied she couldn't carry out the deposit without the key and waited while Terceira looked through Newstead's office for it.

She could not recall the date of the alleged incident or its eventual outcome.

"Joanne and I did try some of the keys that looked like deposit bag keys in the bag,'' Terceira told prosecutor Mr. Peter DeJulio during questioning.

"There were several, and I can't remember if I found the key that fit.'' Fubler, 33, is accused of removing the reported sum from Horizons' deposit bags between October of 1988 and July of 1992.

She is also charged with rewriting the bank deposit slips to cover up the thefts.

One of Fubler's duties was to collect the hotels' daily proceeds and take them to a bank for deposit.

During cross-examination, however, defence lawyer Mr. Julian Hall attempted to punch holes in Terceira's testimony, suggesting she might still have connections to the company and grilling her on why the reported incident with Fubler had not been included in her original Police statement.

It was revealed during Mr. Hall's questioning of Terceira that she hadn't officially recorded her recollection of the alleged exchange until February 8 -- more than two years after it was supposed to have occurred.

"Which is it, Ms Terceira?'' Mr. Hall asked in reference to the incident.

"Are you either imagining this or lying?'' Terceira responded: "I am neither imagining it nor lying, and I believe I swore to that at the beginning of the questioning.'' "Insofar as you're recalling it,'' Mr. Hall continued, "would it be fair to say that your recollections are poor?'' "Fair,'' Terceira agreed. "There are parts of the incident that are more clear than others.'' Earlier, Mr. Hall tried to establish a link between Terceira's current business venture and Horizons.

"As a matter of interest, where do you get your pig chow?'' Mr. Hall asked the witness.

"From a manufacturer in Ohio,'' Terceira replied.

"So it is not what you would classify as pig slop, food waste,'' Mr. Hall continued.

"No,'' Terceira said, adding that she receives no "provisions'' at all from Horizons.

The trial, which began on February 13, continues before Puisne Judge the Hon.

Mr. Justice Meerabux today.