CLEARFIELD – A cleaning lady accused of stealing $6,500 is wanted after she failed to appear for court on Wednesday.
Crystal Dawn Wise, 40, of Clearfield is charged by Officer Nicholas Kovalick of the Lawrence Township police with felony theft by unlawful taking and receiving stolen property and misdemeanor theft by unlawful taking.
Wise failed to appear for her preliminary hearing, all charges were held for county court and a bench warrant was requested for her arrest.
According to the affidavit of probable cause filed with the office of Magisterial District Judge Mike Morris, on July 31, police received a report that a large sum of cash, approximately $6,500, was missing from the victim’s Clearfield home.
He said that one portable blender ($30), two sets of curtains ($30), one strand of battery-operated lights ($10), one large revolving Halloween light ($20), a perfumed body wash set ($80) and tanning supplies ($15) were also taken.
He believed his cleaning lady, Wise, was responsible for the thefts because she had previously stolen his vacuum cleaner, and when he confronted her about it, she admitted to the theft and returned the vacuum to him.
As part of the investigation, police were provided Facebook messages Wise had sent the victim’s wife requesting forward payments and small loans because she had a “tight money situation.”
Wise was interviewed by Officer Zachary Cowan on Feb. 11, and initially denied having stolen anything from the victim’s home. She eventually admitted to stealing the listed items but stated she couldn’t return them, as she’d broken them or no longer had them.
When asked about the money, Wise did admit to taking some because she was struggling financially. She said over a three- to four-month period, she figured that she’d taken around $700 – $1,000, but not $6,500.
Based on his training and experience, Cowan said he believed Wise was being deceptive because of her demeanor and actions throughout the interview.