A Nebraska woman who found a loophole in a convenience store rewards card program is facing criminal charges after she got 7,000 gallons of gas – worth $27,000 – for free.
According to the Lincoln (Nebraska) Police Department, the woman, Dawn Thompson, 45, used a rewards card at a Pump and Pantry store in Lincoln, more than 500 times over six months to pump gas into her vehicle without paying for it, KOLN-TV reported.
Thompson found out that a software update allowed anyone with a rewards card to swipe it twice and changed the gas pump from its regular mode to a “demo” mode, according to KLKN-TV.
In the demo mode, gas would flow from the pump, but no charge for the gas would be recorded.
In addition to using the rewards card 510 times, Thompson is accused of using the card to sell “discounted fuel” to other people, according to court records, KLKN reported.
Thompson told Lincoln police that a man paying off a car debt gave her the rewards card instead of giving her cash, KOLN reported. The man who Thompson claims gave her the card died in January, Lincoln Police officials said.
Thompson was arrested and charged with one count of theft by unlawfully taking more than $5,000. Her bond was set at $7,500.
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