Woman who embezzled from John's Appliance City not happy with sentence

A former bookkeeper at a local appliance store recently sent to prison for stealing nearly $1 million is not happy with her punishment.
Carrie Elizabeth Pifer, 28, of South Daytona has filed an appeal of her 10-year prison sentence, which was handed down in February by Circuit Judge R. Michael Hutcheson.
Pifer had worked for John's Appliance City for nearly a decade when an internal audit uncovered the missing funds. John's founder, John Hinton, said Pifer skimmed "what she decided to take" from the bank deposits at a rate of $250,000 per year.
"I treated her like family," Hinton said in court when Pifer was sentenced.
The notice of appeal was filed in the 5th District Court of Appeals earlier this month.
Although further filings will explain Pifer's arguments, the initial notice of appeal signed by her trial lawyer, Assistant Public Defender Larry Powers, said Pifer is appealing the sentence.
At John's Appliance City on Monday, managers seemed amused that Pifer was not happy with the time she will spend in prison. When she was sentenced for grand theft last month, Pifer faced up to 30 years.
When Pifer gets out of prison, she will be on probation for 10 years, Hutcheson ordered. She will have to make payments to Hinton as part of her release, although the exact terms of repayment were not determined.
Hinton, the business owner, confirmed he was notified of Pifer's appeal and will be awaiting further hearings.
John's Appliance City has four stores in the area -- in Daytona Beach, New Smyrna Beach, Orange City and Palm Coast. Hinton testified that he started the business over 30 years ago "in the back of my truck."
Pifer's scheme involved altering amounts on bank deposits, and then pocketing what she chose, according to testimony.
While Pifer was spending the money, about 40 of her co-workers were being laid off. Some of that was because of the economy or poor job performance, according to testimony. But "several" people had to be let go because of the missing cash flow.
Co-workers noticed fancy Gucci handbags, $300 shirts and a trip to Hawaii that Pifer took with her boyfriend.
When asked about her spending habits, Pifer told them she had a trust fund and had inherited money from her dead grandfather.