Woman accused of trying to cash $6,000 check donation to Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh
PENN TOWNSHIP, Pa. (KDKA) -- A woman was arrested after police said she tried to cash a $6,000 check intended to be a donation to the Tree of Life synagogue.
Anna Maria Krause was wanted on charges of felony forgery, access device fraud and bad check. The Westmoreland County Sheriff's Office said Krause was arrested on Monday in the city of Pittsburgh.
Krause is accused of trying to cash a check for $6,000 that was originally written by a couple and sent to the Tree of Life synagogue as a donation, the sheriff's office said.
The sheriff's office said the bank recognized that the check appeared to be altered, so the bank contacted the victims who were listed on the check. While the bank was on the phone with them, the sheriff's office said Krause ran.
The synagogue said it never received the check and the couple told officials they don't know Krause and they didn't pay her $6,000, the sheriff's office said.
Westmoreland County deputies were working with the Allegheny County Sheriff's Office to go into the Pittsburgh area to find Krause. Plainclothes deputies found her in the city, where the sheriff's office said she was arrested without incident.
She's currently in the Westmoreland County Prison for failing to post bond.
Three congregations worshipped at the Tree of Life synagogue in Squirrel Hill, where a gunman shot and killed 11 people on Oct. 27, 2018. It was the deadliest antisemitic attack in U.S. history. The shooter was convicted and sentenced to death in August.
