Former Chick-fil-A worker accused of $80K mac and cheese refund scheme

A former Chick-fil-A worker in Texas is in a sticky situation after being accused of stealing roughly $80,000 from his ex-employer using a popular side dish: mac and cheese.

The ex-employee of a Chick-fil-A in the Dallas suburb of Grapevine, Keyshun Jones, 23, was arrested on April 17 and charged with property theft, money laundering and evading arrest.

The Grapevine Police Department told USA TODAY that in November 2025, its detectives began investigating a theft reported by the owner of a local Chick-Fil-A. Surveillance footage showed Jones, who was fired a month prior, unattended behind the counter, police said.

The footage also showed Jones using the register to ring up 800 orders of "mac and cheese trays," before refunding them to his personal credit cards, the department said. The alleged theft totaled just over $80,000.

USA TODAY contacted Jones' defense attorney and Chick-fil-A, which deferred questions to local authorities due to the active investigation.

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5 months on the run

According to police, Jones evaded arrest after multiple attempts before being taken into custody on April 17.

An inmate record from Tarrant County shows that Jones is still in custody as of April 30. He currently has a $110,000 bond for the charges related to the alleged scheme.