Former Wendy's Manager Creates 'Ghost Employee' To Collect Pay
Former Wendy’s General Manager Creates ‘Ghost Employee,’ Collects Over $19K In Payments
On July 4, police in Manheim Township, Pennsylvania issued a “theft by deception” warrant for 35-year-old Linda Nicole Johnson, a former Wendy’s general manager, who created a “ghost employee” by the name of William Bright to collect over $19,000 in fraudulent paychecks.
According to the warrant, Johnson was a general manager at a Pennsylvania Wendy’s location near Harrisburg Pike in Manheim Township when the incident occurred.
Police said Johnson paid herself through Bright’s bogus paychecks over a 22-bi weekly pay period. His last 128 shifts were all created by the Monroe, Louisiana native. According to the warrant, Johnson gained a gross pay of $19,898.15 under her fraudulent scheme.
Officials discovered the crime after they performed a forensic audit and were tipped off by a few of her former employees who grew “suspicious” about the fake worker, Fox 43 noted. Utica National Insurance Company, Wendy’s insurance provider, lost a total of $15,846.91 due to the incident.
During the investigation, Manheim Township officials interviewed some of Johnson’s former employees who said they could not “recall ever working” with someone named William Bright.
On April 19, an officer spoke with Johnson about the issue on a video phone call, and she admitted to making up the fictitious employee. She also confessed to creating shifts for the bogus worker.
According to the warrant, she deposited the paychecks into her Cash App account. Johnson claimed that she used the fraudulent wages to help her care for her children. The report didn’t specify how many children the alleged thief had. Police filed a criminal complaint and issued an arrest warrant for the mother. Johnson is still at large. Anyone with information on her whereabouts should call the Manheim Township Police Department at 717-569-6401.
Netizens on X and Instagram have been sounding off about the crazy case. Some users claimed they knew a few ghost employees that have been working overtime for years.
Other users tried to rationalize Johnson’s fraudulent scheme.
“She said she was doing the work of three works. Why not get paid for two? ” one user joked on X.
Indeed.com lists a general manager’s salary in Pennsylvania as roughly $63,000 annually. The median income in Manheim Township is roughly $89,000 per year. That may seem like a lot, but with inflation skyrocketing, some parents are struggling to provide for their families.
According to a survey published by No Kid Hungry in March, 58% of middle-income families and 68% of lower-income families said they struggled to afford groceries for their children over the last year.
In addition to food, parents have been feeling the heat of inflation with housing. The Consumer Price Index Summary Report (CPI) for June reported that housing costs rose 0.4% and ticked up 7.8% on an annual basis. Inflation cooled down to 0.2%, the lowest level since March 2021. Still, housing costs made up 70% of the overall index.
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