A career criminal who stole customer credit card numbers while working as a waiter at several west Knoxville restaurants has been sentenced to 12 years in prison.
David Carroll Masoner, 46, was convicted of three counts of identity theft. At Wednesday's hearing, Assistant District Attorney TaKisha Fitzgerald explained to the court that Masoner stole credit card numbers from dozens of customers he served between 2010 and 2012 while working at several West Knoxville restaurants, including Bearden Fieldhouse, Pero's on the Hill, Honey Baked Ham and Silver Spoon.
Chandler Goff has run Pero's on the Hill for six-and-a-half years. His dream restaurant was almost destroyed by Masoner, one of his former waiters.
"He got one of our corporate cards our business cards, he stung us for some money too and we were getting these statements six weeks after the fact,” said Goff.
The restaurant's accounts were frozen for more than 30 days while investigators worked to investigate every transaction.
"The initial couple of years in this business are crucial and to have something like that happen within your first year can be devastating," Goff said.
When a customer paid for their meal by credit card, Masoner allegedly wrote down the name, number, expiration date and security code of the cardholder, according to the Knox County District Attorney General's Office. He would later charge fraudulent meals and tips to the credit card numbers.
The DA's office said he would also buy gift cards for other restaurants and retail stores.
Agents with the Tennessee Highway Patrol Identiy Crimes Unit, DEA and United States Secret Service, were able to uncover Masoner's scheme. When they arrested Masoner, he had 26 stolen credit card numbers.
"I saw that he was getting the maximum sentence and I think it was warranted because he put a lot of damage into a lot of people's lives,” said Goff.
District Attorney General Charme Allen has warned consumers to check their statements regularly for unauthorized purchase and report any suspicious activity to law enforcement.
Identity Theft is a Class D felony carrying a punishment between two and 12 years. Masoner has 27 prior felony convictions so he received the maximum sentence of twelve years.