Employee charged with stealing cash

By JESSIE STENSLAND
Whidbey News Times Assistant editor
July 24, 2009 · 1:21 PM

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A 28-year-old employee of Skagit Farmers Supply in Oak Harbor stole more than $3,000 in cash from the business, court documents alleged.

Prosecutors charged Serena Overby in Island County Superior Court June 29 with theft in the first degree. Her arraignment, scheduled for Monday, was postponed until July 27.

The manager of the store reported to police June 1 that he had caught Overby stealing by making a “false return” and then pocketing cash from the till, according to a report by Oak Harbor Police Detective Ron Hofkamp. Walker fired Overby that day.

Walker looked over the previous three months of transactions and found that Overby had made a number of false returns, the report states. In all, she stole more than $3,000 over a three-month period, Hofkamp wrote.

In an interview at the police station, Overby admitted to stealing money from the supply store for “the past couple of months,” Hofkamp wrote.

Overby said she took the money because her family had been going through “some hard times” and had trouble paying the bills, the report indicates.

“Overby made the statement that she was ashamed and that she had made a huge mistake,” Hofkamp wrote.

If convicted of the charge, Overby could face up to 90 days in jail under the standard sentencing range.

Contact Whidbey News Times Assistant editor Jessie Stensland at jstensland@whidbeynewsgroup.com or 360.675.6611 ext. 5056.

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