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Mary Margaret Kreuper, 80, admitted to stealing the money from 2008 to 2018 while she was principal at St. James Catholic School in the LA suburb of Torrance. "Unfortunately . Kreuper promised to follow more closely in Christs footsteps and spend the rest of her life trying to make amends. I was wrong and Im profoundly sorry for the pain and suffering Ive caused so many people.. An elderly nun who pleaded guilty to embezzling from a Catholic school to fund her own gambling trips has been sentenced to a year in federal prison. },false) Assistant US Attorney Poonam Kumar told The New York Post that Kreuper even asked parents to donate more money in addition to their $6,000 annual fees. Kreuper pleaded guilty in July to federal wire fraud and . "Unfortunately, later in her life she has been suffering from mental illness that clouded her judgment and caused her to do something that she otherwise would not have done," read the statement, which was carried by media outlets, "She is very sorry for any harm she has caused. A. pg.acq.push(function() { Viveca Tokatlian, whose son is now a senior at the University of San Diego and was once student in Chang's eighth-grade class, said she was shocked and disappointed by the news. Earlier in January this year, former president Donald Trump pardoned Steve Bannon who was facing a federal case when he was charged with defrauding donors of more than a million dollars as part of a fundraising campaign to build the US-Mexico border wall. Los Angeles, California 90012. Kreuper acknowledged that for a period of 10 years ending in September 2018, she embezzled $835,339 from St. James Catholic School. She pleaded guilty last July to one count . document.querySelector("#adunit").addEventListener('click',function(){ I was wrong, and I am profoundly sorry for the pain and the suffering that I have caused so many people, she told Wright. A Los Angeles nun and school principal who stole more than $800,000 to pay for a gambling habit was sentenced Monday to a year in federal prison. Sister Mary Margaret, 77, was a pillar of the community who spent 29 years as the principal of St. James Catholic School. document.querySelector("#ads").addEventListener('click',function(){ Kreuper falsified monthly and annual reports to the school administration to cover up her fraudulent conduct and lulled St. James School and the Administration into believing that the schools finances were being properly accounted for and its financial assets properly safeguarded, which, in turn, allowed defendant Kreuper to maintain her access and control of the schools finances and accounts and, thus, continue operating the fraudulent scheme, according to court documents. Mary Margaret Kreuper, 80, of Los Angeles, entered her plea to wire fraud and money laundering charges, which together carry a total of up to 40 years in federal prison. Mary Margaret Kreuper, 80, admitted stealing $835,000 while principal of an LA-area school. ga('ads.send', { Kreuper was sentenced to one year in prison Monday and told to pay back the money. Mary Margaret Kreuper had been principal at St. James Catholic School, where Sr. Lana Chang had been a teacher. Mary Margaret Kreuper, 79, first made headlines in 2018 after she and another nun were found to have taken as much as $500,000 to finance gambling trips to Las Vegas . In court papers it was . When it was all over, she had been principal for a total of 28 years, they said. She said that she falsified monthly and annual reports to cover up her actions to assure the school's administration that its financial assets were in safe hands. However, the nun started diverting the money into secret accounts in 2008 to fund her gambling habits and personal credit card charges. Today, she has been held accountable by the United States criminal justice system. She doesnt have any money. Mary Margaret Kreuper, 80, of Arlington Heights in Los Angeles, was also ordered to pay $825,338 in restitution, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California.. Chang and Kreuper's scheme was exposed after an internal auditor confirmed the church's suspicions. eventAction: 'load' According to Press-Telegram, the embezzlement scandal also involves Sister Lana Chang who taught eighth-grade students at the elementary school came to light after a routine audit of procedures that were conducted ahead of Kreuper's retirement. Now Mary Margaret Kreuper, 80, is set to spend a year and a day in prison followed by two years of supervised release. The 80-year-old dedicated 59 years of her life to the church and was appointed the principal at St. James Catholic School in 1990. Link your TV provider to stream full episodes and live TV. "She became a nun when she was 18 years old, and for the next 59 years she dedicated her life to helping others and educating children in Archdiocesan schools," he stated. Mary Margaret Kreuper, 79, of Los Angeles, was charged Tuesday with one count each of wire fraud and money laundering. Kreuper had recently retired, which automatically triggered an audit that found irregularities, . The Torrance Police Department, the FBI and IRS Criminal Investigation conducted the investigation in this matter. Kreupers attorneys Mark A. Byrne and Daniel V. Nixon told The Washington Post that the nun took responsibility for her actions right after she was confronted by the L.A. archdiocese. ", The Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet to which the Chang and Kreuper belonged to had released a statement after their scheme came to light in 2018. Kreuper also falsified the school's monthly and yearly financial reports to hide her embezzlement and, when questioned by parents about the school's resources, told them "there was no money for an awning at school and no money for field trips," prosecutors said. Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper admitted embezzling $835,000 from St James Catholic School in the LA suburb of Torrance. Now Mary Margaret Kreuper, 80, is set to spend a year and a day in prison followed by two years of supervised release. The 79-year-old former nun pleaded guilty to federal charges for stealing more than $800,000 from St. James Catholic School earlier this month. Kreuper agreed to both charges which carry a maximum statutory penalty of 40 years in federal prison. An official website of the United States government. Mary Margaret Kreuper was the principal of the elementary school for 28 years. Not all of the years appear to have involved alleged financial crimes. Kreuper controlled accounts at a credit union, including a savings account for the school and one established to pay the living expenses of nuns -- who had taken a vow of poverty -- employed by the school, prosecutors said. At the same time, prosecutors filed a plea agreement in which Kreuper agreed to plead guilty to the two charges, which carry a maximum statutory penalty of 40 years in federal prison. Explore the variety of ways to be a part of our community. He settled on one year and a day in prison. hitType: 'event', (213) 894-4465. Mary Margaret Kreuper, 79, from Los Angeles faces up to 40 years in federal prison for embezzling funds for over 10 years from St. James Catholic School in Torrance.. Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper was just 18 years old when she took vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. The school became aware of the alleged embezzlement in a routine audit when one of the nuns retired as the school's principal. } She pleaded guilty last July . ga('ads.send', { }); Nuns should realize that just by living their lives and living the way they do and treating people the way they do, they affect children for the rest of their lives, said Wright, who fell silent and covered his face in his hands for a long pause during his pronouncement of the sentence. She even attempted to destroy documents when an audit nearly exposed her arrangement. },false) 312 North Spring Street
U.S. District Judge Otis D. Wright II has set sentencing for February 7, 2022, when he would expect her to make a statement. She has agreed to plead guilty to the charges for embezzling more than $835,000 from the funds of St. James Catholic School where she served as principal a couple of years ago, to pay for her personal expenses. Bannon along with Philip Esformes, 52, a businessman from Florida, who was sentenced for orchestrating a $1B Medicare fraud scheme, spent New Year's Eve as a free man They were part of Trump's long list of pardons and commutations granted to more than 200 convicts in the final days of his presidency. SisterMary Margaret Kreuper, 80, was sentenced on Monday to 12 months and one day in federal prison byU.S. District Judge Otis D. Wright II and ordered to pay$825,338 in restitution to theSt. James Catholic School in Torrance, California, according to a press release from theU.S. Attorneys Office in the Central District of California. Mark Byrne, Kreupers attorney, acknowledged that Kreuper abused her trust, but called on Wright to sentence her to probation. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Yosemite breaks decades-old snowfall record, closing national park indefinitely, San Diego federal judge had defendants 13-year-old daughter handcuffed. Though the statutory maximum on those two charges was 40 years, prosecutors asked that she serve two, according to Courthouse News, and the judge in the case sentenced the senior citizen to just 12 months. TORRANCE, Calif. (CNS) -- The retired principal of a Catholic elementary school in Torrance who embezzled more than $835,000 in school funds to support a gambling habit was sentenced to one year and a day in prison on Monday. Where Sr. Lana Chang had been a teacher old when she took vows of poverty, and... Agreed to both charges which carry a maximum statutory penalty of 40 years in federal prison.. 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