A BC Employee Was Accused Of Issuing $80K In Refunds To Her Own Credit Cards & Was Fired
The "serial refund fraudster" could be facing jail time.
Vancouver police department. Right: Canadian money.
A West Vancouver woman in her 30s was arrested by the North Vancouver RCMP following a report made by a local business owner. The report claimed that the business had been defrauded by the employee.
According to a statement by the North Vancouver RCMP, the woman allegedly made "several large refunds to her personal credit cards" from June to September 2021.
The reported total was approximately $80,000. "Incidents like this highlight the importance of diligent bookkeeping," the North Vancouver RCMP wrote in a tweet.
\u201cWe have arrested a serial refund fraudster who defrauded a local business owner of $80,000. Incidents like this highlight the importance of diligent bookkeeping.\n\nRead our full release here: https://t.co/zdtnXfYwqK\u201d— North Vancouver RCMP (@North Vancouver RCMP) 1673997981
Constant Mansoor Sahak told Narcity that "the owners entrusted the employee into running the day-to-day operation, and they were just quite upset."
"Our message to the general public is to make sure you do your due diligence [...] following up on finances," he continued. "Don't just rely on one employee to take care of all your finances, because the situation could have been prevented earlier and it went on for several months."
The business owner was away on a trip during the period when the refunds occurred, and the owner was alerted by their bank and made aware of the fraudulent activity. When the owner returned, he discovered the refunds and called the police.
The suspect was an employee at this time and was let go immediately, according to Sahak.
If the woman, whose identity is being protected until charged, is found guilty of theft over $5,000, she could face a ten-year prison sentence.
"Reducing frauds in North Vancouver is a priority for the community," the North Vancouver RCMP statement reads. "We have specialized units who use advanced investigative techniques to target these offences, and just as this situation demonstrates, we rely on the community to call us when they feel something is not right."