UPDATE: Sept. 14, 2020, 12:38 p.m. - Court records indicate that charges against Pisut have been dismissed as part of a Rule 586 restitution agreement.
According to the complaint, Hatfield Township Police were dispatched to Tigers Family Restaurant—located along the 1000 block of North Broad Street—on Aug. 27 for a report of a theft by an employee, later identified as 50-year-old Susan Pisut. Upon arrival, police spoke to one of the owners, who stated that Pisut was allegedly stealing from the register by reporting that customers were paying the bill using a gift card and then pocketing the cash, the report states. (Note: the method of theft is being withheld by North Penn Now, to prevent similar actions.)
The owner informed police that the amount of gift card transactions made by Pisut was very high, and they were otherwise rare when she was not working, police said. Investigators were also provided with surveillance footage allegedly showing Pisut ringing up orders as gift card purchases on multiple occasions, then taking the cash that the customers had used to pay their bill, the report states.
Investigators learned that the restaurant has only sold $3,035 worth of gift cards since they opened in August 2016, but nearly 500 gift card redemption transactions totaling $8,716.18 had been conducted in 2019. The complaint states that $7,640.26 worth of bills had been closed as gift card transactions while Pisut was working in 2019, with $3,688.53 of the transactions occurring during her shifts in July and August alone.
Pisut was fired from Tigers Family Restaurant on Sept. 3. Police interviewed her later that day, at which point she allegedly confessed to the theft scheme, adding that she had stolen small amounts of money throughout the year, but did it more frequently in July and August after she missed two weeks of work and her son lost his job, the complaint states.
As a result of the investigation, Pisut was arrested on Oct. 15, and arraigned two days later by Magisterial District Judge Andrea Duffy on felony charges of theft by unlawful taking, receiving stolen property and theft by deception. Due to Pisut being on probation at the time of her arrest, a detainer was lodged and she was remanded to the Montgomery County Correctional Facility.
Her next court appearance is a preliminary hearing on Oct. 30 at 1:30 p.m. in front of Judge Duffy.
The complaint states that since Pisut was terminated on Sept. 3, total gift card transactions have been less than $50.
(Editor’s note: All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using court records and the affidavit of probable cause, and reflects the point of view of the police. Should the defendant choose to issue a public statement, or is later found not guilty or has the charges dropped, we will update this article accordingly.)
See also:
Man Repeatedly Strikes Vehicle With Trash Can, Assaults Responding Officers: Police Said
Awaiting Hearing On Child Porn Charges, Man Charged With DUI After Crashing Car
Undercover Prostitution Sting Leads To Four Arrests In Montgomery Township
Man Who Crashed Motorcycle During Police Chase Identified, Charged With DUI
Towamencin Man Charged In Connection With Fatal Overdose Of Souderton Woman
