A former employee of Westminster Auto Parts has been found guilty of conspiring to steal thousands of dollars from her employer by creating receipts for bogus refunds.

A Carroll County jury deliberated for about three hours before returning a guilty verdict Wednesday evening against Billi Jo Beacham, 25, of the 900 block of Bankard Road, after a two-day trial on a single count of felony theft by scheme.

Circuit Judge Raymond E. Beck Sr. scheduled sentencing for June 30 on the conviction, which is punishable by up to 15 years in prison and a $1,000 fine, said Jerome J. Joyce, assistant state's attorney.

The case arose after a fellow employee became suspicious last April when he saw Beacham operating a computer at the parts counter of the Westminster store on Tuc Road, Joyce said. A slip was found for a $455.33 refund with a fictitious part number and that amount of money was missing at the end of the day.

A search of company receipts found similar "adjustments" listing the same fictitious part number between August 1997 and April, with 57 bogus receipts totaling about $25,000, the prosecutor said.

Pub Date: 3/21/99