An assistant manager was arrested in a refund fraud scheme at a Central Florida store.
Polk County Sheriff’s Office deputies recently arrested 22-year-old Justin Johnson following a grand theft investigation at the Ace Hardware store located at 1218 Finley Ave in Davenport.
Local deputies were contacted by the store owner, who reported noticing a pattern of unusually high refund amounts occurring. The suspicious transactions ranged from $400 to $1,500. The total amount of fraudulent charges was approximately $7897.81.
During the investigation, deputies reviewed surveillance footage and identified Johnson, who was employed as an assistant manager at the time, as the employee conducting each of the fraudulent returns. According to the evidence, Johnson was making false sales and then processing the returns at his register; at the payment terminal he used his phone to transfer the refunded money into his personal account.
The store owner also reported that Johnson unexpectedly quit his job shortly after the fraudulent transactions.
Deputies arrested Justin Johnson and charged him with grand theft more than $5k less than $10k, and defraud to obtain property less than $20k.
“This was a clear case of an employee abusing his position for personal gain,” said Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd. “I’m proud of the quick work by our deputies and grateful to the business owner who reported the suspicious activity. We will always stand with our local businesses and hold offenders accountable.”
