GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — A McDonald’s employee in Grand Rapids has been arrested after police say a customer caught the employee photographing their credit card after ordering food in the drive-thru.
Police say the incident happened back on Thursday, May 5 at the McDonald’s location on the city’s northwest side at 1101 Leonard St.
Cheryl Flores, of Grand Rapids, tells 13 ON YOUR SIDE she stopped at McDonald's after a long day at work and noticed the employee take a picture of her debit card.
“She took my debit card, swiped it and all of a sudden, she turned her back to me to the drive-thru window and I saw her hunching. I saw her put her hand on her right pocket and then it appeared she was taking a picture. She was doing something shady, so I honked my horn and that's when she dropped my debit card,” Flores said.
Flores said the employee defended her actions saying she dropped her card, but Flores said she still did not feel right about it. Flores immediately alerted management to the incident who then contacted police the next day.
“I don't want to be a Karen today, you know, but when she came back to the window, she was like, 'What?' You know, 'I was just picking up your debit card, I dropped it.' And I said, No, obviously, it looked like you were taking a picture of my card,” Flores explained.
Flores said before leaving the restaurant’s drive-thru she put a lock on her debit card and ordered a replacement.
When she got home that night, she reportedly called the manager of the store who told her that he watched the surveillance footage and watched the employee do this to several customers.
A spokesperson for the Grand Rapids Police Department said detectives investigated and found evidence to support the customer’s claim but it’s not clear how many other people were impacted.
We’re told the employee is a juvenile and was arrested and charged with felony possession of a financial transaction device.
Police say no other employees were charged. It is not clear if the employee who was charged is still employed by McDonald’s.
In a statement from McDonald’s of Michigan, the company said “We are continuing to cooperate with police and all inquiries for information should be directed to them.”
Flores said her message for others is to make sure you always keep an eye on your accounts because you never know what is being charged. She also says to make sure you are aware of your surroundings to be aware of issues like this.
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