By Kristine Snodgrass, Staff Writer
A former executive assistant was arrested last week for allegedly using company credit cards to charge over $300,000 in personal purchases while working for a Plainsboro pharmaceutical company.Dawn B. Dawson, 32, made the purchases over a one-year period while she was executive assistant to the company’s chief executive officer, said Plainsboro police Detective Russell Finkelstein. The name of the company was withheld by authorities.
Her purchases included tickets to playoff sporting events, concert tickets, family vacations to the Poconos, household items, furniture and tattoos, he said.
”She bought everything under the sun,” he said.
She was authorized to use the CEO’s credit card to pay for his business and travel expenses, he said. Also in charge of his expense reports, she was able to cover up her own purchases on the card, he said. She also made fraudulent purchases on a credit card assigned to her for business purposes, he said.
The company discovered the purchases shortly after Ms. Dawson was terminated for unrelated reasons, he said. The new executive assistant noticed charges to an online ticket broker, which she brought of the attention of the company’s chief financial officer, he said.
She turned herself into Bound Brook police Jan. 29, and faces charges of credit card fraud, fraudulent use of a credit card, and credit card theft. After she was fingerprinted and photographed, she was released on $100,000 bond, pending future court appearances.
