An Arkansas McDonald’s employee lost the entire balance of her payroll-card account within 30 minutes of receiving her wages, according to a police affidavit described in KAIT’s November 9 report.
Two ATM withdrawals totaled $760 while the young worker was visiting Memphis, Tennessee.
Investigators accuse Saundra Deettalynn Carcione, 54, of Beech Grove, of using her access as a manager at the Brookland restaurant to obtain an unissued payroll card and link it to the employee’s account.
The worker still had her own card when the money was withdrawn.
Worker Said She Found the Manager Looking Through Her Purse
According to KAIT’s account of a probable-cause affidavit, Brookland Detective Amy Kary met with the juvenile employee and her parent on August 14 to discuss the unauthorized withdrawals. Carcione had helped the employee set up her payroll card, the report said.
The worker told police she had seen Carcione rummaging through her purse at work earlier that week. When confronted, the manager said she was putting the employee’s keys back, according to KAIT’s account of the affidavit.
ATM Card Number Did Not Match the Worker’s Own Card
KAIT, citing the affidavit, reported that the two ATM withdrawals occurred around 9:48 p.m. on August 12 at a Unico Bank ATM in Paragould, Arkansas. Kary obtained surveillance photographs from the bank and identified Carcione as the person making the transactions. Records obtained from U.S. Bank under a search warrant showed that the card number used at the ATM differed from the number on the employee’s physical card.
According to KAIT’s description of the affidavit, employees at the Brookland restaurant were paid through company-issued cards, with unused cards kept in a safe in the manager’s office. Managers had access to those cards and authority to activate them using account information associated with employees’ existing cards.
Kary alleged that Carcione used that access to obtain an unused card and duplicate or link the employee’s account information to it. The detective described the suspected method as cloning the card.
Judge Finds Probable Cause and Sets $35,000 Bond
The preserved jail-roster excerpt records Carcione’s November 6 arrest and November 9 release. The booking entry lists financial identity fraud.
On November 9, District Judge Thomas Fowler found probable cause for financial identity fraud, a Class C felony; theft of property involving credit or debit cards, a Class D felony; and fraudulent use of a forged card or account number, a Class A misdemeanor, KAIT reported. The judge set a $35,000 cash-or-surety bond, with a court appearance scheduled for December 16. Carcione is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
Report Unauthorized Payroll-Card Withdrawals Directly to the Issuer
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau advises contacting the card provider immediately after discovering an unauthorized transaction. Payroll cards carry federal error-resolution protections, and delaying a report can affect the amount a cardholder may have to bear.
Check transaction records even if your physical card is still in your possession. The CFPB’s card-security guidance recommends replacing a compromised card and considering a PIN change.
Ask the issuer how to follow up on a disputed withdrawal in writing. Keep copies of transaction records, correspondence and the dates of follow-up calls.