A Lansdale woman is facing charges after she allegedly stole thousands of dollars while working at the West Point Deli in Upper Gwynedd, along with a customer donation jar intended for Manna on Main Street, police said.
Heather Alderfer, 36, of Lansdale, has been charged with felony theft and receiving stolen property in connection with the investigation by the Upper Gwynedd Township Police Department. She was arraigned on Thursday morning and is currently free on $5,000 unsecured bail.
Police were initially dispatched to the deli on Nov. 14, 2022, to take a report of two stolen cash drops totaling $1,800 that were missing from the safe. The envelopes were later located buried in a trash can in the women’s bathroom, however they were empty and none of the money was recovered, police said.
Two months later, police were again dispatched to the deli to take an additional report of thefts from the register, as an employee noticed an unusual amount of cash returns while looking through the register’s receipt history, according to charging documents. Surveillance footage from a security system installed after the November 2022 theft showed an employee — identified as Alderfer — logging 20 fake cash returns on the register, totaling an $1,823.20 in stolen cash, police said.
As the investigation continued, police said Alderfer had been tasked with delivering a $220 cash donation to Manna on Main Street that had been raised by customer donations via a donation jar, however she allegedly kept the cash for herself. A staffer with Manna on Main Street was able to verify past donations from West Main Deli, however they had no record of receiving the $220 donation from Alderfer, police said.
Police said that on Feb. 24, Alderfer voluntarily appeared at the police station to speak with investigators and admitted to stealing the money from the register, the donation jar, and the cash drops. In the recorded interview, Alderfer said she “felt a rush” stealing the money, according to investigators.
In total, Alderfer allegedly stole a total of $3,843.20 from West Point Deli, police said. Her next court appearance is a preliminary hearing on April 7 at 10 a.m. in front of District Judge Suzan Leonard.
All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using court records and the affidavit of probable cause.
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