Latest news with #TruistBank
Miami Herald
10-07-2025
- Miami Herald
Man who stole $800,000 from elderly person in Miami area pleads guilty to fraud
Three years ago, a Cuban man living in Panama set his sights on the flush bank account of an elderly person in South Florida, federal authorities say. Michel Duarte Suarez, 50, ended up stealing more than $800,000 from the person's account and laundered the money with the help of associates in the Miami area, according to his plea agreement filed on Wednesday in Miami federal court. Suarez pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit bank and mail fraud, along with aggravated identity theft. He faces several years in prison, including mandatory-minimum punishment of two years for the ID theft conviction, at his sentencing hearing in September before U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams. Suarez was indicted in 2023 but was living in Panama City, Panama, at the time. In early 2025, he was arrested in Panama and brought to South Florida to face the charges. According to a factual statement filed with his plea agreement, here's how Suarez carried out the scam during an FBI-led undercover operation: More than 80 fraudulent checks In March 2022, Suarez told a confidential informant that he had access to the bank account of an elderly person, who was 82 years old at the time. Suarez created and mailed dozens of falsified checks from Panama to South Florida to the victim's bank with directions to cash them and return half of the money to his account at Bank of America. The ill-gotten proceeds were wired to his Miami-based company, Online Electronics. To carry out the scheme, Suarez's fraudulent checks contained forged signatures designed to resemble that of the victim's on a signature card at Truist Bank. 'In total, Suarez and his co-conspirators stole $803,146 from [the victim's] bank account at Truist through the issuance of more than 80 fraudulent checks to numerous different payees, including at least five individuals and various companies,' according to the factual statement signed by the defendant, his lawyer and a prosecutor with the U.S. Attorney's Office in Miami. The statement also said the elderly person reviewed the names of the individuals and companies involved in the fraudulent check transactions. The person did not authorize any of them. The case, investigated by the FBI, Secret Service and FDIC's Office of Inspector General, was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Thor Pogozelski.
Yahoo
21-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
North Carolina woman sues former employer over Chucky doll prank she claims gave her PTSD
A former bank employee has filed a lawsuit against Truist Bank alleging discrimination and retaliation after she said a prank involving the doll Chucky exacerbated her anxiety disorder, according to several reports. Debra Jones claims in the lawsuit that despite knowing she had a fear of dolls, her manager placed a Chucky doll, "the doll that kills people," on her chair in her office, the New York Post reported. Jones claimed in the lawsuit that after the incident she was diagnosed with PTSD, saying she had shared her fear of dolls with her manager at a company cookout and that it affected her disabilities, which include generalized anxiety disorder, major depressive disorder and the autoimmune disorder vitiligo, WRAL-TV reported. Jones claimed she was treated differently when she returned to work last year following two months of medical leave, accusing the bank of retaliating against her for needing to leave at 3 p.m. to treat her autoimmune disorder. City Employee Accused Of Planting Noose On Her Own Desk At Pennsylvania City Hall In Alleged Staged Hate Crime After Jones returned to a new office and new manager she was "subjected to discrimination and retaliation based on her being a qualified individual with disabilities," according to the complaint. Read On The Fox News App Clown Seen Outside Schools Sparks Fear, Leads Education Company To Apologize Her supervisors claimed that her coworkers "also needed time off," the lawsuit said, according to the station. Jones was let go in March after a manager told her she couldn't keep using her disabilities as an excuse, the lawsuit claimed, People magazine reported. Chucky comes from the 1988 horror movie "Child's Play," in which a dead serial killer inhabits a boy's doll and kills people. The lawsuit, filed in North Carolina in May, claims the bank violated the Americans with Disabilities Act and Jones is seeking compensatory damages. Fox News Digital has reached out to Truist Bank for article source: North Carolina woman sues former employer over Chucky doll prank she claims gave her PTSD
Fox News
21-06-2025
- Fox News
North Carolina woman sues former employer over Chucky doll prank she claims gave her PTSD
A former bank employee has filed a lawsuit against Truist Bank alleging discrimination and retaliation after she said a prank involving the doll Chucky exacerbated her anxiety disorder, according to several reports. Debra Jones claims in the lawsuit that despite knowing she had a fear of dolls, her manager placed a Chucky doll, "the doll that kills people," on her chair in her office, the New York Post reported. Jones claimed in the lawsuit that after the incident she was diagnosed with PTSD, saying she had shared her fear of dolls with her manager at a company cookout and that it affected her disabilities, which include generalized anxiety disorder, major depressive disorder and the autoimmune disorder vitiligo, WRAL-TV reported. Jones claimed she was treated differently when she returned to work last year following two months of medical leave, accusing the bank of retaliating against her for needing to leave at 3 p.m. to treat her autoimmune disorder. After Jones returned to a new office and new manager she was "subjected to discrimination and retaliation based on her being a qualified individual with disabilities," according to the complaint. Her supervisors claimed that her coworkers "also needed time off," the lawsuit said, according to the station. Jones was let go in March after a manager told her she couldn't keep using her disabilities as an excuse, the lawsuit claimed, People magazine reported. Chucky comes from the 1988 horror movie "Child's Play," in which a dead serial killer inhabits a boy's doll and kills people. The lawsuit, filed in North Carolina in May, claims the bank violated the Americans with Disabilities Act and Jones is seeking compensatory damages. Fox News Digital has reached out to Truist Bank for comment.
Global News
19-06-2025
- Global News
Woman with doll phobia sues boss after prank allegedly left her with PTSD
A former Truist Bank employee has filed a lawsuit against the company, claiming her manager thought it was Child's Play to prank her by placing a Chucky doll on her chair during training. Debra Jones alleges the prank caused her to suffer a severe panic attack and claims she needed weeks of medical leave after the stunt featuring the Chucky doll, known from the Child's Play horror movie franchise. Jones accused the manager, identified as Matthew Korr, of deliberately traumatizing her and alleged she was discriminated against because of her medical conditions, which include 'major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, and autoimmune disorder vitiligo,' according to court documents obtained by People. She said her employer knew she had those medical conditions and that the incident took place in June 2024, during her last week of new hire training. Story continues below advertisement Jones said she told her manager that she had a crippling fear of dolls so he threw her into full panic mode when he placed 'the doll that kills people, in Plaintiff's office chair.' According to the lawsuit filed in Nash County, Jones said her manager's actions interfered with her training and worsened her medical condition. She added that the manager laughed when he saw her reaction to seeing the doll on her chair. Jones was treated by a medical provider on the same day as the prank and placed on medical leave for eight weeks after receiving a diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), according to the court documents. 3:35 'It's just good, stupid fun:' 'Chucky' actor Jennifer Tilly talks about new TV series When Jones returned to work in August 2024, she said she was assigned a new manager and claimed that there were continuous problems with her, including an incident when the manager made a joke in front of her and other team members about her being 'always fraudulent vigilant' after Jones discovered a fraudulent cheque. Story continues below advertisement Jones said she found the joke to be offensive and argued in the complaint that she was treated differently from other team members when she made mistakes and alleged that the treatment was based on her disabilities. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy The complaint noted another incident in January 2025 when another Truist manager allegedly told Jones that her accommodation of leaving work at 3 p.m. three times a week for treatment of her autoimmune disorder was affecting other employees who needed time off. The manager allegedly told Jones that the job might not be a good fit for her and that she can't keep using her 'emotional and anxiety problems as an excuse.' The complaint alleges that the manager hinted that Jones would be fired if she didn't improve. Jones alleged that she experienced panic attacks after the meeting with the manager and was taken out of work for treatment of her disabilities. In March, Jones claims that her employer notified her to pick up her personal belongings at the office. Jones is suing Truist Bank for emotional distress and discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act. She is seeking compensation for lost wages, emotional pain and mental anguish for an unspecified amount. 1:47 'Child's Play' trailer A similar situation took place in the U.K. in May when an NHS worker was awarded close to 30,000 pounds (C$55,000) after being compared to Star Wars bad guy Darth Vader at work by a former colleague. Story continues below advertisement Lorna Rooke said that in 2021, a co-worker took a Star Wars-themed Myers-Briggs personality test on her behalf that likens participants to one of the franchise's characters. Rooke, a blood donation bank employee, was given Darth Vader — the Sith lord widely viewed as one of the most powerful, hated villains of the franchise — as her personality doppelganger, but said she was not present when her colleague, Amanda Harber, took the quiz for her, saying she had left the room to answer a personal phone call. Harber then disseminated the results among their colleagues. An employment tribunal in Croydon, London, ruled that the incident was a 'detriment' because it harmed Rooke and impacted her negatively, the BBC reported. As a result of the quiz, Rooke was made to feel widely disliked, which contributed to her low mood and led her to feel anxious in the workplace, the tribunal found. She won the detriment case and was compensated 28,989.62 pounds, which equates to C$53,288.76. — With files from Global News' Rachel Goodman
NDTV
19-06-2025
- NDTV
US Banker Sues Employer Over Chucky Doll Prank, Claims It Gave Her PTSD And Ruined Career
A former employee of a US bank is suing her ex-employer on allegations that a manager placed a Chucky doll in her office chair despite knowing she was afraid of dolls. According to the New York Post, Debra Jones, who worked at North Carolina's Truist Bank, filed a complaint against her former company on May 21. In her complaint, she alleged that she was "subjected to discrimination and retaliation based on her being a qualified individual with disabilities". She is now seeking compensatory damages from the bank, according to the complaint filed in the US District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina. Debra Jones said she began her employment at Truist Bank in April 2024, the outlet reported. In her complaint, she stated that she was diagnosed with "major depressive disorder, generalised anxiety disorder, and autoimmune disorder vitiligo." She alleged that her employer knew she had those medical conditions and her fear of dolls. In June 2024, during the last week of new hire training, Ms Jones said that her manager placed a Chucky doll in her office chair. Notably, the doll is a fictitious character from the 1988 slasher horror film 'Child's Play'. In her complaint, she said that the manager's actions interfered with her training and worsened her medical condition. She also alleged that her manager laughed when he saw her reaction to seeing the Chucky doll. On the same day, Ms Jones was treated by a medical provider and was placed on medical leave for eight weeks. She then received a diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after the Chucky incident. Ms Jones returned to work in August 2024 and was assigned a new manager and was allowed to leave work at 3 pm, three times a week, for treatment of her autoimmune disorder. Then, three months later, she said that the new manager made a joke in front of her and the team about her being "always fraudulent vigilant," after she discovered a fraudulent check. Ms Jones said she found the joke offensive. In her complaint, she argued that she was being treated differently when she made mistakes, and that the different treatment was based on her disabilities. She also alleged that she was subjected to retaliation and discrimination by her new manager. In January, Ms Jones alleged that another manager told her that her reasonable accommodation of leaving work at 3 pm was affecting the other employees who needed time off. They also told her that the job might not be a good fit for her and that she can't keep using her emotional and anxiety problems as an excuse. They also allegedly told her that she would be fired if she didn't improve. In her complaint, Ms Jones claimed that she experienced panic attacks after meetings with the two managers and was later taken out of work for treatment of her disabilities. Then, in March 2025, she was notified by her employer to pick up her personal belongings at the office. She argued that she experienced retaliation, discrimination and different treatment based on disabilities. She also stated that the actions of the bank have led to lost wages and caused her emotional pain and mental anguish.
