MIDDLESBORO — A Middlesboro woman was arrested at her home around 1 p.m. on Tuesday afternoon for forging time cards, in order to keep receiving payment from a Knoxville-based company that had dismissed her nearly one year prior.

Lynna J. Smith, 25, of Middlesboro, was placed under arrest and charged with five felony counts of theft by deception under $10,000.

According to Kentucky State Police (KSP) Trooper Doyle Halcomb, law enforcement authorities received a complaint about Smith from Manpower, Inc., of Knoxville, Tenn. The company told officials that Smith had been terminated, but kept forging time cards and submitting them for close to a year.

KSP Trooper Doyle Halcomb, with the assistance of KSP Trooper Keith Baker, made the arrest on Tuesday afternoon, and stated that the arrest extended from months of thorough investigation.

“After a lengthy investigation, we determined that she was forging time cards in the Knoxville area and coming back to Middlesboro to pass the checks off at local establishments,” stated Trooper Halcomb.

Halcomb claimed that each of the five checks cashed were over $1,000. He explained that Smith may have cashed more checks in the area, and said that the case is still under investigation.

Smith is currently being held in the Bell County Detention Center.

An arrest is an accusation only. Individuals arrested are considered to be innocent, unless proven guilty in a court of law.

Adam Young is a Staff Writer for the Middlesboro Daily News. He can be contacted by e-mail at ayoung@middlesborodailynews.com.