Whitchurch Co-op worker found guilty of coupon con
A Whitchurch supermarket worker has been found guilty of taking part in a conspiracy to defraud the store where she worked.
Michelle Carson, 43, of Wrexham Road, Whitchurch, was on trial after seven other employees at the town’s Co-op branch admitted their part in the scam which could have cost the store up to £40,000.
Over the course of 2016, the eight women re-used discount vouchers, including one for £10 that they had laminated to preserve it.
Carson denied conspiracy to commit fraud by abuse of her position, but a jury at Shrewsbury Crown Court found her guilty yesterday after deliberating for about three hours.
In an interview with police, Carson initially claimed that she had had no involvement with the scheme and that other people must have used her till to process the fraudulent transactions.
How the case unfolded:
Two of the co-conspirators, Yazmin Moore, 26, and Susan Broster, 59, gave evidence at Carson’s trial. Moore, who had worked at the shop for seven years, said she considered Carson a mother figure.
Staff at the store had initially unearthed the conspiracy after noticing three of the women used coupons frequently.
John Rose, area manager for the Co-op, visited on November 30, 2016, and told staff members he was doing a health and safety audit before asking staff to go through their bags which is when he found stashes of coupons.
All eight will be sentenced on October 19.
