Wanted woman accused of using grandfather’s ‘debit card without his permission,’ and he turned her in

TAVARES, Fla. – An older man called sheriff’s deputies after he checked his bank information and “noticed multiple transactions from his account which he did not make.”

In the end, his adult granddaughter was arrested.

Actually, “before deputies could investigate this incident, the defendant was secured in handcuffs” because there was a warrant out for her arrest, their report said.

Authorities in Florida said they showed up at the home “in reference to a fraud/theft complaint,” and the victim “stated his granddaughter — identified as Autumn Marie Ellison, defendant — used his debit card without his permission.

“The victim stated he noticed multiple transactions from his account which he did not make.”

The arrest report described the grandfather’s checking account statement:

• “On Sept. 12, 2024, there is withdrawal on his debit card to a PayPal account of ‘Ellison Autumn Visa Direct’ of $41.

• “Another withdrawal of $25 to the same account on Sept. 12, 2024.

• “On Sept. 14, 2024, a withdrawal from the victim’s debit card to an Apple Cash account for $10.

“The victim advised he does not have a PayPal account or Apple Cash account; therefore, he did not make these transactions, and the Apple Cash account is believed to be the defendant’s.”

Then came the twist, that there was “an active Lake County warrant” on Ellison.

“As deputies were escorting the defendant to a patrol vehicle,” they wrote, “the victim asked the defendant why she stole from him, and what she did with the money.

“The defendant responded with ‘nothing,’ and wanted to know if the victim wished to pursue charges against her.

“The defendant did not deny the allegations that she stole from the victim.” 

That happened on Sept. 14.

Ellison had been wanted for possession of narcotics equipment after a traffic stop involving cocaine less than two months earlier, on July 19.

A police officer said shortly after 3 a.m., he noticed her “red Ford pickup truck … with only one operational tail light.”

Ellison was going to get off with a written warning but the officer deployed his “certified narcotics detection partner, K9 Goro, to conduct an open air sniff of the vehicle.”

The affidavit describes in detail what happened after he “gave K9 Goro his search command.”

Eventually, the dog gave a stimulus alert so the cop conducted a probable cause search.

“On the front seat was a black purse which belonged to the driver,” rather than her passenger, he wrote. “I knew this purse to belong to the driver due to her holding it in her lap and attempting to take it out of the vehicle with her prior to my search.”

The officer reported finding “a clear glass pipe which contained burnt pieces of Brillo pad and white residue” inside a cigarette pack.

“I recognize this pipe to be commonly used in the inhalation of crack cocaine. I later tested the residue in the pipe with a department-issued test kit, which yielded a presumptive positive result for cocaine.”

Despite the coke, this could’ve been Ellison’s night. First, she got a written warning for the tail light and the affidavit said now, “Autumn was issued a notice to appear, and released on scene.”

But the opportunity was apparently wasted.

Her arraignment was scheduled for Aug. 13 at 8 a.m. but court records say she didn’t show up. That’s when the warrant was issued.

Ellison, 43, was charged with “fraudulently using the victim’s debit card without his permission,” the deputy wrote. That’s a felony.

She was also charged with petit theft of her grandfather’s $76 and failure to appear for possession of narcotics equipment. Both are misdemeanors.

Ellison pleaded not guilty to all the charges, and has been in jail ever since.