VIRGINIA BEACH
Stephanie Burnham was working the register at the Firehouse Subs outside Lynnhaven Mall one evening late last month when a man came in demanding a refund.
He said he'd had an allergic reaction to something in the food he'd eaten there earlier and had to go to the hospital for shots, Burnham said. As proof, he presented bright red eyes, hives on his arms, a swollen tongue and needle marks, she said.
The balding white man in his 40s sai d he'd spoken with the restaurant's owner and that he agreed to give him $87.97 as compensation - a refund for his food and money to pay for his shots, police said.
So Burnham handed over the money. Later, after talking to the owner, she realized she'd been conned.
"My first thought wasn't, 'This guy's conning me,' " said the 17-year-old shift leader. "When I saw him, there was something wrong with him."
But Burnham wasn't the only one fooled. The mustached con man, described as about 5 feet 8 inches tall and 180 to 250 pounds, pulled similar scams at the Cold Stone Creamery in the mall and at a nearby Quiznos, said Officer Adam Bernstein, spokesman for the Police Department. He made off with more than $300 in the three scams on May 27 and 28, Bernstein said.
At Cold Stone, the man said a hair found inside a cake had made a guest at a church function vomit, incurring carpet-cleaning costs, Bernstein said. At Quiznos, he said some chicken had made him sick, requiring an emergency-room visit, he said.
"It's unfortunate," Bernstein said. "The store is trying to be customer-friendly, accepts these stories and gets ripped off."
The suspect also tried the con at several other local restaurants but was unsuccessful, Bernstein said.
Anyone with information about these crimes is encouraged to call the Crime Line at 1-888-LOCK-U-UP (562-5887).
Kathy Adams, (757) 222-5155, kathy.adams@pilotonline.com
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HUH
The only think I can say is......when in doubt,when you don't know,you BETTER ask somebody.
give them a break
coolguy..how very easy of you to get on your high horse. I'm sure most fast food workers are not illiterate. Many are young and just doing the job before moving on to something else. That's not to excuse the poor decision these employees made, but you also have to attribute the environment of "the customer is always right" that pervades fast food.
Having worked in the restaurant business for the last 20 years, I can tell you it can be difficult. You would not believe the scams and stories I have come across during this time. I have seen cons, beatings, property destruction, robberies, people coming up to the store with shotguns because their order was wrong...and a certain percentage of customers will always just be downright rude, implacable, mean and psychotic in their demands that you be perfect and meet their demands 100% OR ELSE. I have seen way too many people fired for not having this "customer is always right" attitude. It could be a tiny little thing like questioning a customer's honesty in regards to a messed up order. Next thing you know they are on the phone with a supervisor and the employee is fired. It does not matter that the customer was lying through their tee
It is impossible . . .
To train kids for every possible contingency in a business. If you think otherwise, try opening a new register in a crowded checkout area and see how many people start yelling at each other for violating the perceived "rules" of who should go first at the new register!
Nice Quality
Note to owner of Firehouse Subs/Quiznos/Coldstone
The quality of employee you get for minimum wage is usually fairly close to illiterate. In your zeal to put more coin in your pocket by hiring low hanging fruit, you have managed to cost your bank accounts $300 combined. This is in addition to the countless customers you lose from poor attitudes, dirty facilities, and the money lost from people who can hardly count higher then their ten fingers.
My suggestion is to offer a higher wage, and avoid these scenarios altogether.
Good day.
S
The girl mentioned in this story, Stephanie, is a member of the church I belong to. She just graduated from high school this month, with honors, and has been awarded a full merit scholarship. Additionally, she regularly participates in community service projects and volunteers at church. I certainly hope that this bright young lady is not discouraged by this incident or your comments.
S
The girl mentioned in this story, Stephanie, is a member of the church I belong to. She just graduated from high school this month, with honors, and has been awarded a full merit scholarship. Additionally, she regularly participates in community service projects and volunteers at church. I certainly hope that this bright young lady is not discouraged by this incident or your comments.
Con job
I think most of you folk are just a little to harsh toward this young lady. Think about it, at least she is working, not strolling the streets and getting into trouble. They have to learn somehow and too often we forget that WE had to start somewhere also when we were young.
Give her a break. Yes, she made a mistake, but, she will learn from this and be more careful and the owner or manager should be notified concerning anything this serious before anything is done.
There is absolutely no reason for her to be fired. We all make mistakes, or have you forgotten your biggest bloopers when you started out in the work field years ago? Have some patience and some of that "empathy" that Obama wants in our Supreme Court. Blame the con man not the teen. Young lady, keep your head up and keep working hard and you will go far in life. Don't let hurtful words from hateful people discourage you. God bless you!
pw in NC
hey morgan
this con artist is probably jobless....thanks to the fascist you put in the whitehouse. you can count on more stories just like this one as more and more people become desperate to support their families and keep a roof over their heads.
Well........
This store just set their self up for a robbery! knowing nothing but kids are running the store, makes them more vunerable,poor management.
This is true of every fast
This is true of every fast food joint, ice cream parlor and smallish retail store in the area.
Some people are good at conning. I once (years ago) spent an hour trying to "help" a con man who claimed his baby was projectile vomiting and thus he needed to get into the pharmacy (at the supermarket where I worked overnight) to get her medicine. At the time I sort of "knew" it was a con but not enough to not try and help the man (and his "baby" of course). He was quite convincing and had me truly concerned for his "baby"." I called pharmacies all over the area looking for one that was open. Eventually he became agitated and I kicked him out of the store, but he never broke character, and the only reason I know it was a con is he came in six months later with very similar story. I just called the cops right in front of him that time and said "I have a drug addict trying to con his way into my pharmacy." he left.
nadezhda
I totally disagree with you. If I owned or was the Manager of any of these stores, my shift workers would be advised never to dole out money without contacting me or another Manager. A 17 year old "shift leader" certainly should not be expected to make decisions of this sort. I am stmyied this kook could get away with this nonsense.
katet43483
If you can't trust a 17 year old to follow a refund policy, then that 17 year old shouldn't be a shift leader in the first place. If more companies provided detailed customer service training, this wouldn't be an issue. I'm not placing any blame on the people that fell for these scams...obviously the scammer is at fault, but owners need to inform their employees of how these situations should be handled.
Wow! What insight!
After reading the entire story, I would have never guessed that President Obama had anything to do with it.
Wow! What insight!
After reading the entire story, I would have never guessed that President Obama had anything to do with it.
The correct response
Would have been to immediately issue the refund on the food receipt, if provided. As far as the "actual" damages, a bill and statement from the hospital or rug cleaning company should be submitted and turned in to a senior manager. If these had been actual cases, the company would have no paper trail to offset any legal actions. It's all a matter of customer service training!
Listen
The customer presented himself with physical marks. Don't deride the shift supervisor for giving customer service. Don't we always say the customer is always right? We know that is not true, but when it comes to customer service, that is what we believe. The person who is taking advantage is the one who has to answer for himself in the long run. She did the right thing.
17 ?
I am sorry, not to criticize the young lady behind the register, but someone has left a 17 year old running the store as shift manager. It is great that the owner has that much confidence in a minor, but one would thing there would be a responsible adult available at all times. She has not yet had time to learn to be cynical.
Restaurant ripoffs
Call the police first and wait for them. Do not hand money out to claimants.
THE MTV TEXT MESSAGING ME, ME, ME GENERATION
This is our future. Ignorant, gullible teenage workers just hand over money to an unknown person with an unverifiable story. The workers didn't verify the story or contact the store manager or owner to confirm any potential payment arrangement. No they just forked over the money! I hope these workers were fired. On a lighter note, these kids can actually vote and have children.
Receipt
It's a shame that people stoop this low, and there's a reason why receipts should be required