PORT ANGELES — A former manager of Landing’s Restaurant was convicted of first-degree theft for using a company credit card to make thousands of dollars worth of unauthorized purchases in 2006.
Melanie A. Royce, 52, of Clallam County was found guilty by a jury in Clallam County Superior Court on Wednesday.
She will be sentenced on June 30.
Port Angeles police were assigned in September 2006 when then-restaurant owner Sandi Hartman reported that Royce had taken more than $10,000 from the waterfront business, which closed its doors in 2008.
Court documents show that Royce used a company VISA card to make $10,112.98 in unauthorized purchases between March 2005 and December 2005.
“The resolution of this case took teamwork and cooperation between people in the community, financial investigators, bank security, the Clallam County prosecutor’s office and the Port Angeles Police Department,” Port Angeles Police Detective Jason Viada said.
Hartman, who opened the restaurant as a fish-and-burger bar 25 years ago, closed the business in November 2008. She said she owned rent to Paul Cronauer, owner of The Landing mall that housed the restaurant.
Police say Royce, also known as Melanie Piper, was hired as a server in November 2004 and became manager in January 2005.
Hartman discovered the thefts in early 2006 when she reviewed the credit card statement for December 2005. It showed a $710.04 purchase on the travel website Travelocity and a $140 transaction for Kenmore Air, court documents show .
Three purchases totalling $1,563.34 were made with the air carrier Lufthansa on Sept. 16, 2005, police said.
There were a total of 75 unauthorized purchases on the statements, according to police.
Furthermore, Hartman told police that a $607.50 check to the restaurant was never deposited, and that Royce paid herself twice in one pay period in April 2006, court documents show.
Police obtained a search warrant for Royce’s bank records in February 2007. She was charged with first-degree theft in June 2007.
First-degree theft is a Class B felony that carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $20,000 fine.
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Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-417-3537 or at rob.ollikainen@peninsuladailynews.com.
