Dollar General stores being targeted by known scammer, Coweta County deputies say

NEWNAN, Ga. - Coweta County authorities are on the lookout for a woman they say has scammed cashiers at metro Atlanta Dollar General stores.

Confidence and friendliness are two of the attributes of a good con artist, according to authorities, and they say Airel Mack is well practiced.

Investigators say that’s 31-year-old Mack, of Alabama, was seen on surveillance video from a Coweta County Dollar General store pulling a scam she knows well.

"This scam being the ‘Cash Cash scam,’’ said Coweta County Sheriff’s Investigator Christian Spinks. "More specifically what this individual will do is walk in to the Dollar General, find a younger employee, and advise them that, ‘Hey, I used to be a manager here at the Dollar General’ at so-and-so."

They say she takes a blank gift card, in this case a Green Dot card, and persuades the cashier to swipe it, and punch a few buttons on the register. It is an act that actually loads money onto the blank card.

Investigators say Mack took this Coweta Dollar General store for more than $1,000.

"Newnan Police Department is also experiencing some, which they have also got a current arrest warrants for the same individual. We got video footage of the same individual that committed the crime at our Dollar General, also being the one that committed it with Newnan Police Department’s investigation," said Spinks.

Coweta County investigators confirm Mack was among five women pulling the same scam in Birmingham. They say the US Secret Service investigated the loss of more than $250,000 at Alabama Walmart stores.

Three years later, they say it appears that Mack has brought the scam to Georgia and Dollar General stores.

Investigators warn store clerks not to let customers swipe gift cards and then give instructions on what buttons to push on the register.

Anyone with information on Airel Mack, especially where authorities might find her, call the Coweta County Sheriff’s Office.