Scott City woman charged with felony theft

A Scott City woman was arrested Friday on charges of stealing more than $7,000 in gasoline from her employer.

Charlotte Wrinkle, 40, is charged with four counts of felony theft and two counts of felony fraudulent use of a credit device.

Authorities accuse her of using gas credit cards from her employer, General Sign Co., for her own personal use.

Wrinkle was arrested by Scott City officers Friday at her home, according to officer Gina Cook.

For eight years, Wrinkle worked for General Sign and was in charge of billing and the 16 gas credit cards used by installers at the company, Cook said.

Since 2004, Wrinkle spent $7,188.93 in premium gas on the credit cards in Scott City, but General Sign never authorized her to use the cards, according to Cook.

The company accuses her of stealing about $35,000 from the company through the use of the credit cards, Cook said. Because of the statute of limitations, investigators could only charge her for crimes that go back three years.

Some of the credit card use was also alleged to have occurred in Cape Girardeau County, but no charges against her had been filed there as of Saturday.

Because she was the one who took in receipts and received the credit card bills, Wrinkle could cover her tracks, Cook said.

"She's the only one who monitored this," the officer said.

When General Sign switched credit card companies, the new creditor noticed some discrepancies and contacted General Sign, which began an investigation and alerted police.

Bond was set at $15,000.

kmorrison@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 127