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40 °F Forecast | Road Cams Sunday, December 5, 2004 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Wellness Connection Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People MARKETPLACE Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Classifieds Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend May 14, 2004 Four charged in Goodwill thefts Investigation confirms suspicion that some items didn’t make it from donors to stores By JOHN DARLING for the Mail Tribune ASHLAND — Four employees of the local Goodwill store have been charged with thefts of merchandise totaling around $4,000. Steve Martin, Goodwill’s Southern Oregon manager, filed complaints against four employees following a months-long internal investigation, according to police records. Goodwill employee Travis Hoover’s case has been referred to the Jackson County District Attorney’s Office for possible indictment on first-degree theft, a felony, on suspicion of taking merchandise valued at $2,348. Kerry Alonzo, Deborah Ortiz and Alison Yale were charged with second-degree theft, a misdemeanor, on suspicion of taking merchandise valued under $750, said Ashland police Sgt. Jim Alderman. The three with misdemeanor charges will appear in Ashland Municipal Court. Goodwill resells donated items, ranging from clothing to furniture, at its 1,900 stores in North America to raise money for job-assistance programs for the disabled and disadvantaged. Advertisement The theft at the Ashland store was noticed through "regular program monitoring done in the interest of safeguarding the public, which entrusts its resources to us," said Goodwill marketing director Russ Levin in Medford. Martin declined comment. Goodwill’s management called police after obtaining evidence and statements from workers, Alderman said. Several ex-employees of Ashland Goodwill say they witnessed employees putting dropped-off merchandise in their cars. "All the good stuff was being snagged by intake people," and they put all the bad stuff on the (sales) floor for customers, former employee Kelly Pagoda said. "The merchandise would go from the vehicle (of the donor) to the ground, where workers would say ‘I want that’ and then it would go in their vehicle," said Pagoda. "We thought that was unfair, but I felt it wasn’t my place to speak up. "Money paid by customers in the yard never reached the till, either. I know because I worked the till." Former worker Amanda Brinegar said she saw glassware, vases, CDs, clothes and books regularly set aside by employees and removed without apparent payment. "I had a lot of reason to say something, but I didn’t," Brinegar said. An ad-hoc community group called RAGS (Reclaim Ashland’s Goodwill Store) formed earlier this year and attempted to investigate what they believed was a decline in the quality of customer service and merchandise at the Ashland store. Suspecting internal thefts but lacking sufficient evidence, the group contacted Ashland police, who told them Goodwill would have to request an investigation. Levin said the Ashland store is "having a fantastic year with very strong sales, so if some people are perceiving a decline in the quality of merchandise, most people aren’t or they wouldn’t be shopping there." Tim Alford, board chairman of Southern Oregon Goodwill and president of Rogue Federal Credit Union, said staff "strenuously and vigorously" investigated the thefts as soon as they were alleged. "We suspected from hearsay that something was going on there," Alford said. "We try to be aware (of theft) but if you have drop-offs and if there are unscrupulous employees, this can happen." John Darling is a free-lance writer living in Ashland. E-mail him at [email protected] Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2004 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback ADVERTISERS A D V E R T I S E R S SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Opportunities