An Ohio woman who is refusing to pay for $1,600 worth of Girl Scout cookies has now been charged with theft, WCPO-TV reports.
Authorities in North College Hill, Ohio, say 31-year-old Noel Hines accepted 400 boxes of Girl Scout cookies in March for her daughter’s troop to sell.
But the Girl Scouts of Western Ohio say they have yet to be paid for the cookies.
Officials from the Girl Scouts and law enforcement attempted to reach Hines over the past six months but were not successful. Then earlier this week, Hines was charged with theft after being arrested on unrelated charges.
North College Hill police officer Michael Henn told the Cincinnati Enquirer he believes all of the cookies were sold to customers. None of the proceeds made their way back to the Girl Scouts.
“None of the cookies were ever recovered,” Henn told the newspaper. “It’s believed all the cookies were delivered to customers, and she didn’t forward the money to the Girl Scouts.”
Each box of cookies sells for $4 each, according to the Girl Scouts of America’s cookie manual.
In a statement, the Girl Scouts of Western Ohio said these types of situations are “infrequent” and “unfortunate.”
“When we have evidence that an adult misuses troop funds, we pursue vigorously and, when appropriate, contact law enforcement to recover as much money for the troop as possible. This is not something we take lightly,” the group added.
Hines has been arraigned and was released Wednesday on a signature bond. She is scheduled to be court next in late November.
“That’s the way the cookie crumbles,” North College Hill police wrote in a Facebook post.
[Feature Photo: Noel Hines/Hamilton County Justice Center]
