Woman uses fake racial incident to dupe Dollar General out of $530

By Fran Jeffries

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

A woman allegedly duped a Stockbridge Dollar General store out of $530.92 after claiming she had been the victim of racial profiling at another Dollar General in Jonesboro, according to police.

Christopher Allen Brooks, the manager of the Stockbridge Dollar General, told police a woman calling herself "Ms. Woods" came into his store around 6 p.m. on Sept. 5 and told him that she was owed a refund for items she had bought at a Jonesboro Dollar General store and that the manager from the Jonesboro store would call and verify she was owed the money.

Shortly thereafter, Brooks received a call from a ‘Shanna' who claimed to be the store manager at the Jonesboro Dollar General. Shanna asked Brooks to give the customer $530.92.

Shanna told Brooks that the customer, whom she called Ms. Woods, had bought six comforter sets and six sheet sets at the Jonesboro store a week earlier but had been overcharged for the items.

Shanna continued, saying that when Ms. Woods called the Jonesboro store to inquire about the overcharge, the customer overheard the cashier who rung up the items call Ms. Woods "a dirty low-down N-word" and that "ever since Obama got into office black people think they can do anything."

Shanna,  the fake manager, told Brooks that Ms. Woods had retained counsel to sue the store and had been in contact with Dollar General regional offices.

The fake manager told Brooks that Ms. Woods lived 10 minutes from The Stockbridge store and would come there for a refund. At about 10 p.m. a woman arrived at the store and identified herself as the Ms. Woods the manager had called about. Brooks eventually gave Ms. woods a refund for $530.92.

After the transaction Brooks called his manager, Yvette McConnell, about the incident. McConnell called the Jonesboro store manager and was told that she knew nothing about a racial incident or a refund and suggested police be called. The Stockbridge store cameras caught footage of the suspect in the store and as she drove off with her refund, according to police.