An Illinois teacher says a student stole her credit card, and she is trying to get her money back.
Tammy Huggins, who teaches at Mason Clark Middle School in East St. Louis, discovered the alleged theft in early March after seeing a notification from her credit card company about some unexpected charges. One of them was for $220 at an online retailer called Shein.
Huggins recalled, “When I saw that charge, I checked my purse and thought, ‘I know who did this.’” Other students in her class reportedly mentioned that one of their classmates had been bragging about taking her wallet and using it to buy items from Shein and make DoorDash orders.
According to Huggins, the school principal, Renaldo Jackson, said that the student’s family wanted to apologize and returned one of her credit cards. However, she stated that she still hadn’t received the $200 lost, nor had she been offered any help.
Huggins is still without her wallet, her driver’s license, and her other credit cards, in addition to the stolen $220. She filed a police report to try to recover her missing items. She expressed her frustration with the school’s response. “I’m a teacher, living paycheck-to-paycheck…and it feels like they’re not taking this seriously,” she said.
The East St. Louis School District noted in a letter to parents that they are investigating the theft and had identified a suspect, but they lacked evidence to confirm the student’s involvement initially. However, on March 24, the student’s parents admitted their child’s role in the incident, leading to disciplinary action in accordance with the school’s guidelines. The family also offered to compensate Huggins and the student submitted a written apology.
The school has emphasized its commitment to addressing reports of theft seriously and maintaining a safe learning environment, though they have not commented on the specifics of this situation.
