She took cash deposits and used a company credit card between 2012 and 2013, according to state police.
The thefts started with small personal charges on a company credit card, authorities said -- $30 at a gas station, $40 at a department store.
But within a year, a now-former Land of Make Believe bookkeeper had robbed her employer of $49,000 in cash and fraudulent charges, according to criminal charges filed against her this week.
A now-former bookkeeper at the Land of Make Believe is accused of stealing $49,000 in cash and fraudulent credit card purchases from the Hope Township amusement park. (lehighvalleylive.com file photo) Tracey Husarenko, 37, of East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, is charged with eight counts of theft and six counts of fraudulent use of a credit card after turning herself in this week at the New Jersey State Police barracks in Netcong, according to a department spokeswoman.
She had a first appearance Wednesday in state Superior Court in Belvidere and was released on her own recognizance. A phone listing for Husarenko could not be found.
Management at the Hope Township amusement park reported missing funds -- which totaled $49,146 -- in August 2014 to the state police, about the time the park marked 60 years of operation.
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The credit card charges started small in late 2012 and early 2013, according to the charges. Occasional purchases allegedly increased to a couple hundred dollars at a time through the year.
Later that year, Husarenko began taking increasing amounts of cash, at one point pocketing $17,000 from an August 2013 deposit, according to the charges.
She is also accused of stealing 100 tickets from the park and scrap metal proceeds totaling $151.
Doug Steinhardt, the park's attorney, confirmed that Husarenko was fired.
"It's a regrettable incident, but it's one that my client does take seriously," Steinhardt said, adding that the park ownership will cooperate with authorities however they can.
Steve Novak may be reached at snovak@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @type2supernovak. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.