Woman steals $13K in checks made out to Girl Scouts, Huntersville police say

HUNTERSVILLE, N.C. — Huntersville police said a woman took more than $13,000 in checks meant for the Girl Scouts, wiped off their troop name, and put her name on the checks instead.

Channel 9′s crime reporter Hunter Sáenz uncovered court documents laying out the scheme.

In newly published search warrants, the Huntersville Police Department says a man “wrote three checks made payable to Girl Scout Troop 1090.” It’s not clear where that troop is or if it’s affiliated with Charlotte’s Girl Scouts chapter.

The checks were written over the course of two months last year. One was for $3,600, another for $4,700, and one topped $5,000. In all, they totaled $13,476.

There was no explanation for the large amounts or what the money was for, but the victim told police the woman to whom he gave the checks “changed the checks to be paid ... to her...” and deposited them in her account.

Margot Payne volunteers with the Girl Scouts and is the mother of a current Girl Scout.

“It makes me angry,” she said. “I mean, thousands of dollars would help anybody in any situation.”

When Sáenz told her about the case, she couldn’t believe it, knowing the hard work so many Girl Scouts put into fundraising crucial money for troops.

“It’s a lot of work on the girls and the parents,” Payne said.

“It costs us money to do things. And none of my troop members are really, financially well off,” she added.

Huntersville police are interested in looking at the surveillance video and other evidence from Skyla Credit Union, where the checks were deposited.

Right now, no one is charged, so that’s why Channel 9 didn’t name the woman being investigated.

(WATCH BELOW: What to know about ‘reshipping fraud,’ and how to catch it)

What to know about ‘reshipping fraud,’ and how to catch it

©2024 Cox Media Group