A Hardy woman has been charged with participating in an attempted scam targeting elderly and disabled individuals, according to Baxter County Circuit Court records.
Patti Lynn Dunlap, 73, appeared in court on Monday, where she entered a guilty plea to the charges against her. She is scheduled to return to court in November. During the proceedings, a request was made to allow her existing bond of $50,000 to be posted as cash or through a bail bond company. Dunlap was released Monday afternoon.
The case stems from an undercover operation in July in which Dunlap drove from Hardy to Mountain Home believing she would collect $45,000 from an elderly scam victim who uses a wheelchair. However, the supposed victim was a decoy, and the money was counterfeit. Dunlap was taken into custody during that operation.
Following her arrest, Dunlap informed Mountain Home authorities that she had worked as an emergency dispatcher for over 20 years.
The scam Dunlap was allegedly involved in appears to follow similar patterns seen in the region recently. Law enforcement officials have reported the arrest of several so-called "money mules" linked to fraud operations targeting vulnerable individuals. These cases often involve foreign nationals, with some suspects being transferred to the custody of federal immigration authorities for further investigation.
More details about Dunlap’s alleged role in the scam are expected in the upcoming court proceedings.