One former student said Kreuper violated her trust and contributed to her decision to leave the Catholic Church. At the prosecutors request, the judge later lowered the amount by $10,000 to account for what she has already repaid. As principal a position she held for 28 years Kreuper was responsible for the money the school received to pay for tuition and fees, as well as for charitable donations. was part of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet order, Everyone Practices Cancel Culture | Opinion, Deplatforming Free Speech is Dangerous | Opinion. Defense attorneys said Kreuper became a nun when she was 18 years old, and for the next 59 years "dedicated her life to helping others and educating children in Archdiocesan schools. ga('create', 'UA-67136960-15', 'auto', 'ads'); 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. 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. 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.. eventAction: 'render' We need to send a message that embezzling and betraying is not OK no matter who you are, no matter what your age or circumstance, Rhilinger told the judge. An indictment was unsealed today charging Terren S. Peizer, the CEO and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Ontrak Inc., a Henderson, Nevada-based publicly traded health care company, for A Carson man who was a central figure in an international fraud and money-laundering network that targeted $25 million through a variety of frauds including romance scams and elder A former executive at cinema subscription service MoviePass Inc. has been arrested on a federal grand jury indictment alleging he embezzled approximately $260,000 from MoviePass parent company to repay money Central District of California Mary Margaret Kreuper, 80, admitted stealing $835,000 while principal of an LA-area school. Lock Eighty-year-old Mary Margaret Kreuper admitted stealing the money from 2008 to 2018 while she was principal at St. James Catholic School in the LA suburb of Torrance. Online prison records do not yet show Kreuper in federal custody. Mary Margaret Kreuper, 80, of Los Angeles, pleaded guilty in July to federal wire fraud and money laundering charges. Crime News is your destination for true crime stories from around the world, breaking crime news, and information about Oxygen's original true crime shows and documentaries. After reviewing all the letters, Wright said, it appeared most families had forgiven Kreuper. 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. In July, she pleaded guilty to one count each of. Kreuper, who was principal at the elementary school for 28 years, was responsible for the money the school received to pay for tuition and fees as well as charitable donations. (CBSLA). She admitted that she had caused losses amounting to $835,000 to St James Catholic School. Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper was just 18 years old when she took vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. eventAction: 'load' 312 North Spring Street First published on June 8, 2021 / 8:30 PM. The Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet are a congregation of Catholic sisters. 'I have sinned, I've broken the law and I . Put simply, anyone who stole over $800,000 from a school would go to prison, your honor, Assistant U.S. Atty. Link your TV provider to stream full episodes and live TV. We also deeply value relationships. Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper was reportedly able to escape intervention from authorities for 10 years as she diverted tuition fees and other funds to old and secret bank accounts. The stolen money could have covered a decade of tuition for 14 students at a school that lacked money for field trips or new books and classroom supplies, prosecutors said. "Sister Mary Margaret and Sister Lana have expressed to me and asked that I convey to you, the deep remorse they each feel for their actions and ask for your forgiveness and prayers," Meyers said in a Nov. 28 letter to parents. Sister Lana, her 67-year-old accomplice, worked there for 20 years as. document.querySelector("#google_image_div").addEventListener('click',function(){ 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. "Unfortunately, later in her life she has been suffering from a mental illness that clouded her judgment and caused her to do something that she otherwise would not have done. Our community is concerned and saddened by this situation and regret any injury to our long relationship with the families of the school. A. She is very sorry for any harm she has caused.''. ", 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. Mary Margaret Kreuper, a nun who admitted stealing more than $800,000 from St. James Catholic School in Torrance when she was its principal, spent some of the money on trips to Las Vegas and Lake Tahoe. However, the nun started diverting the money into secret accounts in 2008 to fund her gambling habits and personal credit card charges. Ive used this to teach my son that were all human, we all make mistakes, but the power of forgiveness is the most powerful tool that we have.. Kevin de Len just postponed Wakanda Forever screening after uproar, I-5 closed through Grapevine as last wave of winter storm hits Southern California, Dictators and criminals fear this USC instructor whos making the case for an Oscar, Photos: Mountain communities buried in snow | More on the way, Prosecutor in controversial Hannah Tubbs case suspended for misgendering defendant, Environmentalists sue to overturn San Diego County climate plan. She pleaded guilty last July to one count . She will also be placed under two years supervision after the completion of her one-year and one-day prison sentence. Her plea agreement from June 8 with the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California said the 79-year-old had diverted funds into the St. James Convent Account and the St. James Savings Account. Mary Margaret Kreuper, 79, was charged Tuesday with one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering, according to the U.S. attorney's office for the Central District of California. Kreuper controlled accounts at a credit union, including a savings account for the school and one established to pay the living expenses of the nuns employed by the school, the U.S. Department of Justice said in a statement. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. Sister Mary took responsibility for her actions by pleading guilty. "I don't look at nuns as ordinary people," he said, according to FOX 6. Until this last spring, Kreuper was the principal of St. James Catholic School in Torrance and Chang was its vice . Julija Garunkstis, who attended the small school of three stucco and red-brick buildings from 2005 to 2014, told the judge about the fear that Kreuper instilled in children when they misbehaved. Since our first sisters gathered in 1650, our members have been called to do all things of which women are capable. The first sisters of our congregation arrived in St. Louis, Missouri in 1836, and we now have additional locations in St. Paul, Albany, Los Angeles, Hawaii, Japan and Peru. Official websites use .gov "They were just such staunch defenders of moral fortitude, they were really tough on the kids," she said. I was wrong and Im profoundly sorry for the pain and suffering Ive caused so many people.. Sign up forOxygen Insiderfor all the best true crime content. Public Information Officer Be the first one to comment on this story. We are one of the worlds fastest growing Auditors at the meeting said that checks made out to the school for tuition and other fees first went to Kreuper before being handed over to the bookkeeping staff. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. The Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet confirm that today the judge of the United States District Court for the Central District of California in Los Angeles has sentenced our Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper, CSJ to one year and one day in federal prison followed by two years' supervised release. Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper was sentenced to a year in prison after she admitted to stealing more than $835,000 from a Southern California school to fund her gambling addiction. Kreuper's embezzlement is nothing like what goes in the political circles of the country. 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. A California nun is heading to jail after she admitted to stealing more than $835,000 in funds from a Catholic school to pay off her credit card and gambling debts. Your login session has expired. 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. Prosecutors also said that Kreuper directed St. James School staff to alter and destroy financial records during an audit, and caused total losses of $835,339. The lawyers also mentioned that the nun was suffering from a mental illness that clouded her judgment and caused her to do something that she otherwise would not have done. They noted that she was remorseful and very sorry for any harm she has caused., Attorney Kumar also shared that during her confrontation Kreuper mentioned that she embezzled money partly because she believed priests get paid better than nuns.. }) }); We pray that in time those impacted will find healing and the seeds of forgiveness. Prosecutors filed federal wire fraud and money laundering charges against Mary Margaret Kreuper, 79, for stealing more than $835,000 in school funds to pay for personal expenses, including gambling trips, the Justice Department said. She even attempted to destroy documents when an audit nearly exposed her arrangement. window.googletag.pubads().addEventListener('slotOnload', function(event) { ", She also admitted in the plea agreement to falsifying monthly and annual reports to the school's administration to cover up the fraudulent conduct and "lulled St. James School and the Administration into believing that the school's 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 school's finances and accounts and, thus, continue operating the fraudulent scheme.". It turns out that at the time Kristen Biel learned she had breast cancer, Kreuper, the school principal who fired her, was embezzling large amounts of money to go on gambling sprees in Las Vegas.. Meyers also said at the meeting that Kreuper began displaying "very nervous and very anxious" behavior about the audit and allegedly asked staff to change records. Kreuper was principal at the school for 29 years. Mary Margaret Kreuper, 79, is seen in this undated photo. Kreuper pleaded guilty in July 2021 to one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering. The family of Joseph includes many more than just the sisters. . A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States. As part of her role as the head of the institution, Kreuper oversaw all funds the school received for tuition fees and charitable donations. },false) pg.acq.push(function() { hitType: 'event', Emailus. However, her scheme was revealed when the archdiocese conducted a financial review for a new principal and noticed certain issues in legal documents after Sister Mary Margaret Kreupers retirement. In court papers it was . Kreuper pleaded guilty in July 2021 to one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering. For a period of 10 years ending in September 2018, Kreuper embezzled money from St. James Catholic School. She was sentenced to prison on Monday, February 7, 2022, for embezzling hundreds of thousands of dollars from the school funds. Kreuper is also accused of directing St. James School employees to alter and destroy financial records during a school audit. A Los Angeles nun jailed for stealing more than $800,000 to fund a gambling habit has admitted "I have sinned". We, and those who share our charism and mission, are motivated in all things by our profound love of God and our dear neighbors. Mary Margaret Kreuper was so close to getting away with it. eventCategory: event.slot.getSlotElementId(), These funds were intended to further the students education, not fund [Kreupers] lifestyle. He settled on one year and a day in prison. Kreuper agreed to both charges which carry a maximum statutory penalty of 40 years in federal prison. ga('ads.send', { This is merely an explanation.. U.S. District Judge Otis D. Wright II said that Kreuper was one heck of a teacher but she ran completely off the road in her life. Have a question about Government Services? According to The New York Post, for the past three and a half years, Kreuper has been under house arrest. }); "They and their Order pray that you have not lost trust or faith in the educators and administrators of the school. eventAction: 'click_adunit' Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper had taken a vow of poverty A now-retired nun has pleaded guilty to stealing more than $800,000 from the St. James Catholic School in Torrance, California, from 2008 to 2018, the last decade of her 28-year tenure as principal of the institution.Sister Kreuper who took a vow of poverty confessed to using the . In a series of deeply personal remarks from the bench, Wright, 77, a Marine veteran and former deputy sheriff who has served as a federal judge for 15 years, said he owed where I am today in large part to a nun who inspired him early in life. Now Mary Margaret Kreuper, 80, is set to spend a year and a day in prison followed by two years of supervised release. The school became aware of the alleged embezzlement in a routine audit when one of the nuns retired as the school's principal. We seek to build communities and bridge divides between people. They also urged Wright to keep in mind that her status as a nun helped her evade detection. if(document.querySelector("#google_image_div")){ A media statement issued last month by her attorneys, Mark A. Byrne and Daniel V. Nixon, said that Sister Mary Margaret had been "very remorseful" and had accepted full responsibility for what she had done. Prosecutors told the judge at her sentencing that Kreuper "stole the equivalent of the tuition of 14 different students per year during the 10 years of her embezzlement scheme. She diverted tuition to a secret account, which she used to fund casino trips, prosecutors said. The religious order Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet, of which Sr. Mary Margaret Kreuper and Sr. Lana Chang are members, has agreed to a "full restitution" of money used for personal matters by the two women, the letter said. However, her arrangement came to light following a 2018 financial review after her retirement. window.googletag.cmd.push(function() { Myers said both the nuns had confessed to their crimes. She is not allowed to leave the premises without permission and is always required to be accompanied by somebody. Chang and Kreuper's scheme was exposed after an internal auditor confirmed the church's suspicions. ", Kreuper, they noted in their press releases, "as a nun had taken a vow of poverty.". ga('ads.send', { Secure .gov websites use HTTPS We seek to build communities and bridge divides between people. Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper, 79, was charged Tuesday with wire fraud and money laundering for ripping off St. James Catholic School for a period of 10 years ending in September 2018, according to . }) The 79-year-old Los Angeles resident was charged Tuesday with one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering. Mary Margaret Kreuper, 80, of Los Angeles, admitted to stealing the funds while she was principal at St. James Catholic School from 2008 to 2018. In private letters to Wright and remarks at the video hearing, some former St. James students asked him to put the nun behind bars. 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.. Mary Margaret Kreuper, of Los Angeles, was the principal of St. James Catholic School in Torrance for 28 years. He is a priest in the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate and a former president of the Canadian Canon Law Society. https://t.co/sk6S5pmKk7, She used the money "to pay for expenses that the order would not have approved, much less paid for." Following Mondays hearing Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper was released under her own recognizance and is required to turn herself in to the Federal Bureau of Prisons by June 7, 2022. LOS ANGELES A nun who was the principal of a Catholic elementary school in Torrance was sentenced today to 12 months and one day in federal prison for stealing more than $835,000 in school funds to pay for personal expenses, including gambling trips. Kreuper, who as a nun had taken a vow of poverty, diverted school funds into the St. James Convent Account and the St. James Savings Account and then used the diverted funds to pay for expenses that the order would not have approved, much less paid for, including large gambling expenses incurred at casinos and certain credit card charges, according to court documents. In her plea agreement, they noted that she used the money "to pay for expenses that the order would not have approved, much less paid for, including large gambling expenses incurred at casinos and certain credit card charges. Please logout and login again. ga('ads.send', { They both retired at the end of this past school year, shortly before St. James Catholic Church in Redondo Beach was made aware of the alleged embezzlement happening at its school. eventAction: 'view' Mark Byrne, Kreupers attorney, acknowledged that Kreuper abused her trust, but called on Wright to sentence her to probation. According to her plea agreement reviewed by Courthouse News, Kreuper began diverting both cash and checks the school received from payment for children's tuition and as donations into a St. James Convent bank account (established to pay for the living expenses of the nuns who worked at the school) as well as a the St. James savings account established for the school itself. After charges were filed, her attorneys issued a statement saying Sister Mary Margaret suffered "from mental illness that clouded her judgment and caused her to do something that she otherwise would not have done. Sisters Mary Margaret Kreuper and Lana Chang, who worked at St. James Catholic School in Torrance, allegedly embezzled half a million dollars and used it for trips and gambling. 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. 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. eventCategory: event.slot.getSlotElementId(), Kreuper controlled accounts at a credit union, including a savings account for the school and one established to pay the . She pleaded guilty to wire fraud and money laundering charges, which together carry a total of up to 40 years in federal prison. 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. The past three and a half years, Kreuper embezzled money from St. James Catholic school decision! Anyone who stole over $ 800,000 from a school audit he said it! Secret accounts in 2008 to fund casino trips, prosecutors said yet Kreuper... July, she pleaded guilty in July, she pleaded guilty to one of... Poverty, chastity and obedience 'load ' 312 North Spring Street first published on 8. Canon law Society be placed under two years supervision after the completion of her one-year one-day... Account, which she used to fund her gambling habits and personal credit card charges 2022! School in Torrance and Chang was its vice the New York Post for. Is a priest in the United States both charges which carry a maximum statutory penalty 40... 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