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The former hospitality manager at Chick-fil-A in the South Birmingham district has pleaded to federal charges after pocketing thousands of dollars from customers.
Larry James Black Jr., 37, of Center Point, pleaded guilty to U.S. District Judge Madeline H. Haikala on Tuesday, according to a joint announcement by U.S. District Attorney Prim Escalona of the Northern District of Alabama and Special Agent of the US secret service in charge of Patrick M. Davis.
Black pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud. His co-defendant, Joshua Daniel Powell, 40, of Moody, pleaded guilty in June to conspiring to commit wire fraud.
Powell’s sentencing is set for October 20 and Black’s is scheduled for January 20, 2022. Both worked at Chick-fil-A in Five Points South and were charged earlier this year.
According to the plea agreement, the crimes occurred between April 2018 and January 2020. Black and Powell devised and implemented a scheme to divert $ 492,000 in customer payments to bank accounts under their control. Black and Powell used the accounts to receive credit card payments from customers destined for Chick-fil-A Five Points South.
Many of those payments were for large customer catering orders, authorities said. The pair used fraudulent email and digital payment accounts that mimicked the look of official Chick-fil-A accounts.
In addition to these fraudulent “Chick-fil-A” accounts, Black and Powell also used a personal email account owned by Powell to intercept virtual credit card payments made on behalf of an additional customer.
Black used the proceeds of the fraud to support his lifestyle, including the purchase of premium luxury and vacation vehicles.
In addition to plotting to defraud Chick-Fil-A Five Points, Black admitted in the plea agreement that he provided a fake social security number to various financial institutions and executed a scheme to defraud his mortgage lender.
In January 2020, Black applied for a mortgage. As part of his loan application, Black falsified payroll records and misrepresented his income from the Chick-fil-A franchise.
As a result of the misrepresentation, Black was able to secure a mortgage in the amount of $ 159,948 to finance the purchase of a home in Center Point, Alabama.
Black and Powell face a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for conspiring to commit wire fraud. Black also faces a maximum of 30 years in prison for bank fraud.
The US Secret Service Cyber Fraud Task Force investigated the crimes. US Assistant Prosecutor Edward J. Canter continued the case
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