A woman working as a cashier at Town and Country Foods in Mountain Home charged with stealing and cashing lottery tickets and with pocketing money from what are claimed to be “fake” product returns pled guilty to her charges during an appearance in Baxter County Circuit Court/Criminal Division March 2.
Twenty-one-year-old Mackenzie Hayes of Flippin was put on probation for two years and ordered to pay $1,500 in victim restitution.
According to the probable cause affidavit, Hayes would steal lottery tickets, scratch them off and scan them to see which ones were winners. She would then cash the winning tickets and pocket the money.
In addition, while reviewing surveillance video dealing with the lottery ticket thefts, it was also brought to light that Hayes was faking product returns and pocketing the refund money herself.
When an investigator for the Mountain Home Police Department responded to the store, management was reported to have confronted Hayes who handed over $175 of the store’s money from her purse.
It is estimated that between the store and the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery, Hayes allegedly stole about $1,500.
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