Cafeteria Workers Stole Nearly $500,000 in Lunch Money From Schools, Police Say

New York Times ^ | August 14, 2018 | Sarah Mervosh

[EdnaMode]

In the well-to-do town of New Canaan, Conn., families pay top dollar to live on picturesque New England streets, frequent the area’s upscale boutiques and send their children to some of the best schools in the state.

But in recent years, a scandal had quietly been brewing at a couple of those schools: Someone had been taking the children’s lunch money — after it had been paid.

For years, cash was disappearing from cafeteria registers at the high school and middle school, apparently unbeknown to school officials. Nearly $500,000 was pilfered from 2012 through 2017, the authorities said.

On Monday, the New Canaan Police Department announced that it had arrested two women: sisters who worked in the cafeteria system.

Joanne Pascarelli, 61, and Marie Wilson, 67, turned themselves in over the weekend and were released on $50,000 bond. They are accused of underreporting how much cash had been collected and taking the remainder. Each was charged with larceny.

Ms. Wilson told the police that “the only thing she is guilty of is feeding a child who had no money or giving somebody a cookie,” the arrest warrant said.

[EdnaMode]

Well that's just sad.

[bgill]

I was constantly being charged for meals mine didn’t eat because I packed lunches every day.

[COBOL2Java]

Ms. Wilson told the police that “the only thing she is guilty of is feeding a child who had no money or giving somebody a cookie,” the arrest warrant said.

And feeding your purse, Ms. Wilson.

[Signalman]

Very guilty.

[proxy_user]

Such nice old ladies, dishing out macaroni for the little kids....and, apparently, dishing out rolls of bills to themselves.

Apparently, the cafeteria took in about $150 a day in cash, and they were stealing $100 of that. If they had been less greedy, and just stolen $20 a day, they might have gotten away with it.

[Gay State Conservative]

Anyone familiar with New Canaan knows it ain’t cheap to live there...or anywhere nearby for that matter.They were just trying to make ends meet.

[Noumenon]

$500K worth of cookies is a lot of cookies.

[EQAndyBuzz]

Every year my wife goes to the local Junior High School and finds out how much money is owed by children. Then she writes a check to zero out their accounts. It’s her way of giving back to the community and it’s a mitzvah.

[RushIsMyTeddyBear]

Happened to us as well. My kid would only buy water because I packed his lunch. When one caf worker saw my son giving a water to a friend...he got in trouble. Greedy, greedy. The school system also required us to buy THEIR special water bottles. $$$$. We home schooled shortly after that for many reasons.

[PAR35]

Union run operation?

Around here they’ve used electronic accounts for years. Load the money on your computer, then track what your child is buying each day - Standard meal, a la carte, ethnic, etc.

[NEMDF]

Do you think the lunch money was stolen from the schools, or from the students? Seems like there would be some accounting of the cash to reconcile with credits made to the students’ accounts.

Or maybe it was just cash being paid (no accounts) for lunches?

Looks like the each got about $50,000 per year over 5 years, if things were split equally. Hope the IRS checks this out, as well.

[Gay State Conservative]

Every year my wife goes to the local Junior High School and finds out how much money is owed by children. Then she writes a check to zero out their accounts.

IMO it's hard to find a city or town in this country in which at least some of the families are struggling.Chances are that yours is such a town.Mine,while generally pretty prosperous,is as well.

However,New Canaan,CT is one of the richest residential towns on earth.Two million will buy you a starter house there.Twenty million dollar estates are a dime a dozen there.And the same holds true for surrounding towns (Greenwhich,Stamford,Darien).

IOW I doubt that there ladies were helping poor kids as your wife,and others,are known to do.

[Cowboy Bob]

It’s okay to steal from those people. They are rich. They can afford it. /sarc

[Chickensoup]

better idea, have the kids work itoff.

[sheana]

It’s been that way here for a long time. And if there’s no money in the account it goes into a deficit and the parents are emailed about it. There is no actual money exchanged in the lunchroom.

[FoxInSocks]

Twenty million dollar estates are a dime a dozen there.

Technically, $240 million a dozen. :-)

[NorthMountain]

giving back to the community

Did she take something from the community?

If she did, that's not a mitzvah, it's restitution of stolen property.

But I'm sure she didn't "take". I'm absolutely certain that what you and she have was earned fairly. Therefore, she's "giving", not "giving back" ... and that's what makes it a mitzvah.

"Giving back to the community" is a Marxist class-warfare propaganda phrase.

[moovova]

$500,000?

School yard bullies are gonna have to up their game if they expect to catch up with the cafeteria ladies.

[livius]

For goodness’ sake, lighten up. What they are doing is a good deed and a personal act of charity, and it doesn’t matter what they call it. Do I do anything like it, by any name? No. Do you?

[NorthMountain]

For goodness’ sake, lighten up.

Blow it. I'll object to the casual (and certainly unintentional) use of Marxist class-warfare propaganda terms anywhere and any time I want. You'll just have to learn to live with it.