A Holiday Inn employee took a photo of a guest’s debit card as she was checking in on May 1 and then used the information to attempt nearly $1,000 in fraudulent purchases, according to a criminal complaint.
Kimberlyn Lipovetsky, 39, of Ashley, faces two felony counts of unauthorized use of a credit card.
According to the criminal complaint, while checking into the Holiday Inn Dunmore on May 1, Jordan Parkhurst noticed the front desk employee “playing around” with her phone.
Parkhurst didn’t immediately report the suspicious behavior but remembered it.
When she noticed two unauthorized purchases on her banking portal on May 5, she contacted the hotel and spoke with manager Corey Pregmon.
Parkhurst told Pregmon she suspected an employee was fraudulently using her card.
Pregmon reviewed security footage and spotted Lipovetsky taking a photo of Parkhurst’s debit card with her cellphone as she was checking in.
Pregmon contacted Dunmore police, who contacted Parkhurst by phone. Parkhurst said she had checked in on May 1 and checked out on May 3.
Officers reviewed the bank account and identified the suspect purchases as $369 at Walmart in Dickson City and $594 at Sally Beauty Supply on May 3.
Police — who noted the Sally Beauty Supply charge had been reversed by the bank — found that Lipovetsky was a registered customer of Sally Beauty Supply.
Police then reviewed video surveillance footage at Walmart, which showed Lipovetsky using her cellphone to connect a debit card with her account, purchasing an expresso machine and then returning it for cash.
Lipovetsky remains at Lackawanna County Prison in lieu of $10,000 bail.
A preliminary hearing is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. on May 26 before District Judge Alyce Farrell.