Waitress fired for stealing, days from sentencing, accused of faking cancer

HAMBURG, N.Y. (WIVB) — A former waitress who was already in hot water has been accused of falsifying medical documents before her sentencing.

The Erie County District Attorney’s office said 31-year-old Town of Tonawanda resident Danielle Bush was fired from her job at a Hamburg restaurant after authorities say she placed fraudulent bets and stole gaming tickets.

According to the DA’s office, Bush stole tickets while processing bets placed by customers for a number of games between June 2019 and February 2020.

As a result, the restaurant lost approximately $50,000.

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“The theft was discovered after the restaurant owner conducted an internal audit of monthly billing statements from the New York State Gaming Commission in February 2020,” the District Attorney’s office said. “The statements revealed abnormally high gaming activity, unusual betting amounts and unique betting patterns, which corresponded with the defendant’s work schedule. The crime was corroborated by video evidence.”

Bush later pleaded guilty to grand larceny and was ordered to pay full restitution. To this date, the DA’s office says she has paid nothing back.

She faces seven years in prison on the grand larceny charge, and four years on a new felony charge of offering a false instrument for filing.

According to officials, Bush was three days from being sentenced when she presented falsified medical records through her attorney. These records “purported to show a cancer diagnosis,” the DA’s office said.

“An investigation by our office found that the medical provider, listed in the falsified documents, had no record of the defendant as a patient,” the District Attorney’s office said.

For now, Bush is being held without bail, but she’s scheduled to return to court for a pre-trial conference on April 25.