School District Employee Accused Of Stealing Wellness Gift Cards

MANCHESTER, NH — A Queen City resident and school district employee is facing a theft charge, accused of stealing grocery gift cards, that were part of a wellness program, and using them, according to police in Manchester. SAU 37 runs a wellness-fitness challenge for employees where the winner of each challenge receives a $25 gift card to Hannaford Supermarket as a bonus. An inventory of the cards took place earlier this year and an employee noticed that some of the cards were missing.

Twenty-six cards in all, with a value of $650, went missing, according to Heather Hamel, the public information officer for the Manchester Police Department, and were confirmed to have never been awards.

"Through their investigation, police learned that the majority of the missing cards had been used and the same Hannaford’s loyalty rewards account was associated with all of the purchases," Hamel said. "This led them to 49-year-old Susan Hawes, an accountant technician at the Manchester School District. Hawes was charged with theft by unauthorized taking."

Hawes turn herself in to police Friday, was released on personal recognizance bail, and is slated for arraignment in Manchester Circuit Court on Dec. 23.

Editor's note: This post was derived from information supplied by the Manchester Police Department and does not indicate a conviction. This link explains the removal request process for New Hampshire Patch police reports.

Got a news tip? Send it to Tony Schinella at tony.schinella@patch.com.

View videos at https://www.youtube.com/user/tonyschinella.