Women charged in theft at racetrack
Four Allegheny County women have been charged by North Strabane Township police in connection with the theft of almost $30,000 from Xpressbet at The Meadows Racetrack earlier this month.
Charged with theft, theft by deception, receiving stolen property and conspiracy were Jawanna Lynn Raines, 39; Ashley Marie Webb, 26, and Monica Lee Brookins, 28, all of Pittsburgh, and Tammy Lynn Smith, 41, of Carnegie.
Webb was arraigned Wednesday before District Judge Jay Weller and placed in Washington County jail on $10,000 bond. She also is in on a probation warrant. Raines was arraigned before District Judge Joshua Kanalis and released from jail after posting $28,695 in bond. The figure represents the total amount of money stolen from Xpressbet. Police obtained arrest warrants for Brookins and Smith.
Township police Investigator Nathan Terling said he received a report from Xpressbet’s chief financial officer who reported that on July 10, an employee altered an existing account and opened three fraudulent accounts, which were credited with nonexistent funds. The four women allegedly cashed out the four accounts and were identified by their driver’s licenses or state identification cards when they collected the money.
Terling said the system is alerted of possible fraudulent activity when money is paid out but no bet has been placed. He said Xpressbet is used to bet on horse racing throughout the world. There are links to The Meadows Casino for payout of the money. Surveillance video shows the four women entering the casino and walking to The Meadows Race Book counter. All four were seen taking payouts from the cashier. The individual payouts to the women ranged from $5,690 to $8,901.
At least two of the women told Terling that they did not know about the fraud and thought they were helping an employee who was not permitted to collect on the alleged winnings. He said one of the woman also indicated that she had never met the other three before the day the money was withdrawn.
Webb and Raines are scheduled for an Aug. 3 preliminary hearing before Weller. Terling said the investigation is continuing.