When the Archdiocese of Los Angeles first confronted Kreuper about her misconduct, she argued that priests are better paid than nuns, and said she believed she deserved a raise, according to the government. "The Sisters have confirmed the misappropriation of funds and have cooperated in the investigation. She even attempted to destroy documents when an audit nearly exposed her arrangement. Or to keep it anonymous, click here. The Los Angeles Times reports Mary Margaret Kreuper, former principal of St. James Catholic School, was facing 40 years in prison but was sentenced to a year and a day on Monday. Mary Margaret Kreuper, 79, of Los Angeles, was charged Tuesday with one count each of wire fraud and money laundering. And I don't look at nuns as ordinary people. The 80-year old nun was ordered to pay $825,338.57 she embezzled while principal at St. James in Torrance, CA and spent gambling in Las Vegas. The 80-year-old nun also was ordered to pay a total of. }); LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Mary Margaret Kreuper, a now-retired nun and a Los Angeles resident was charged with one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering on Tuesday, June 8. eventAction: 'render' },false) Today, she has been held accountable by the United States criminal justice system. 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, according to the US Attorney's Office, California. 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. 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. }); Have a question about Government Services? (Youtube/KCAL) coming from you," he said from the bench when she appeared in court on Thursday. Be the first one to comment on this story. Of course, none of her control legitimately extended to using school funds for large gambling expenses incurred at casinos and certain credit card charges, but that is what Kreuper did. Chang and Kreuper's scheme was exposed after an internal auditor confirmed the church's suspicions. An 80-year-old nun who admitted stealing $835,000 from a Torrance elementary school asked a federal judge on Monday to show mercy and spare her from prison. 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. The charges carry up to 40 years . let gads_event; Unfortunately, later in her life she has been suffering from a mental illness that clouded her judgement and caused her to do something that she otherwise would not have done. They declined to go into further detail about any illness their client may have been diagnosed with, according to a report by Daily Breeze. ga('ads.send', { 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. window.googletag.cmd.push(function() { According to legal documents, Kreuper embezzled money from the school over a period of 10 years ending in September 2018. She must also pay $825,338 in restitution, covering most of the losses of $835,339 from St. James Catholic School in the Arlington Heights neighborhood of Los Angeles. Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper was just 18 years old when she took vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. She reportedly claimed, after she was caught by the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, that she "used the money to travel, eat out with friends and gamble in Las Vegas, Lake Tahoe, and Temecula," the site reported. 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. We are a congregation of Catholic sisters tracing our origins to France in 1650, who strive to share the great love of God with our dear neighbors today. Kreuper pleaded guilty in July to federal wire fraud and . Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper is an 80-year-old nun from Torrance and a former principal of St. James Catholic School. Kreuper, as a nun, had taken a vow of poverty and diverted school funds into the St. James Convent Account and the St. James Savings Account. The St. James Catholic Church school in Torrance, California, on February 7, 2022. Despite her vow of poverty, a California nun embezzled funds from the Roman Catholic school she ran in order to fund her gambling habit, according to federal prosecutors. 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.. Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper, was sentenced to one year and one day for fraud and money laundering. MEAWW brings you the best content from its global team of hitType: 'event', We also deeply value relationships. "We. 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 the plea agreement, she admitted to having 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. Kreuper also admitted that she falsified monthly and annual reports to the school administration to cover up her fraudulent conduct. She diverted tuition to a secret account, which she used to fund casino trips, prosecutors said. At least I hope you do.. 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. Nuns stole over $500,000 from struggling Catholic school to fund trips and gambling habit, FBI recovers over $2M out of $4.4M ransom paid to Colonial Pipeline hackers. A NUN is set to plead guilty to embezzling more than $830,000 from the Catholic elementary school she ran to bankroll her gambling habit, prosecutors say. Prosecutors say that Kreuper who served as the principal of St. James' school for 28 years prior to her 2018 arrest began embezzling money from the school in 2008 when she was around 66 years old. 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. My son got the best education possible, in fact, I probably wouldve paid double the tuition rate in order for my son to attend St. James.. Two Catholic school nuns accused of embezzling about a half-million dollars in tuition, fees and donations from a school allegedly used some of the money to gamble in Las Vegas, according to officials cited in a news report. hitType: 'event', }); Sister Mary Margaret became a nun when she turned 18 in 1960 and took a vow of poverty. Mary Margaret Kreuper, 79, of Los Angeles, will plead guilty on July 22 to federal wire fraud and money laundering charges, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. As part of her role as the head of the institution, Kreuper oversaw all funds the school received for tuition fees and charitable donations. Mary Margaret Kreuper was so close to getting away with it. "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. To know that she had been taking money from my parents and my peers parents the whole time I was there is extremely shocking, and it sways me away from the Catholic Church, she said. 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 Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. Kreuper was sentenced to one year in prison Monday and told to pay back the money. He previously covered state and national politics, including the 2020 presidential campaign. Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper, 80, who took a vow of poverty, begged a judge to show her mercy and spare her prison, saying: "I have sinned, I've broken the law and I have no excuses." She called her crimes a "violation of my vows, my commandments, the law and, above all, the sacred trust that so many had placed in me". She pleaded guilty last July to one count . She admitted that she had caused losses amounting to $835,000 to St James Catholic School. The nun has also been asked to pay a total of $825,338 in restitution to St. James Catholic School. As part of her efforts to suppress everything, she got school employees to change and destroy financial records during a school audit. They also urged Wright to keep in mind that her status as a nun helped her evade detection. pg.acq.push(function() { She further admitted "lulling 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 allowed her to maintain access to the school's finances. Kreuper, who retired in 2018 after 28 years as the schools principal, pleaded guilty in July to wire fraud and money laundering, confessing that she stole tuition checks, spent much of the money on casino outings with friends and tried to cover up the embezzlement. 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. Her crime came to light after her retirement was announced in 2018 and the archdiocese began an audit of the school's finances to prepare for its change in leadership. ", 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. She pleaded guilty toone count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering in July 2021, according to prosecutors, as part of a plea deal. A nun who stole $835,000 from the Catholic primary school where she served as principal for 28 years, was sentenced Monday to a year in federal prison. 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. Sisters Mary Margaret Kreuper and Lana Chang, the former a former principal at St. James Catholic School in Torrance, Los Angeles County, confessed to stealing $500,000 from the school to fund . Mary Margaret Kreuper, 80, was charged with one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering in July 2021 and has agreed to a plea deal for allegedly embezzling $835,000 while she was. 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. Sister Lana, her 67-year-old accomplice, worked there for 20 years as. }); if(document.querySelector("#ads")){ ) or https:// means youve safely connected to the .gov website. United States Attorneys Office I was wrong and Im profoundly sorry for the pain and suffering Ive caused so many people.. Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper admitted embezzling $835,000 from St James Catholic School in the LA suburb of Torrance. We, and those who share our charism and mission, are motivated in all things by our profound love of God and our dear neighbors. Track SoCal rain with LIVE Megadoppler 7000 HD. This is merely an explanation.. 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. Prosecutors had recommended a 24-month prison sentence, three years of. 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, 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. Sisters of St. Joseph of CarondeletFebruary 7, 2022February 14, 2022. Mary Margaret Kreuper, retired nun, pleads guilty to stealing more than $830,000 from St. James Catholic School - The Washington Post This article was published more than 1 year ago Morning Mix. ga('create', 'UA-67136960-15', 'auto', 'ads'); 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. 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. 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. }); WATCH LIVE: Psychic on Trial in Spousal Swindling Case, WATCH LIVE: XXXTentacion murder trial 3 men charged in 2018 shooting death of rapper, WATCH LIVE: Murdaugh Family Double-Murder Trial, Law&Crime Looks Ahead to 10 Remarkable Criminal Trials Scheduled for the First Half of 2023, 9 Shocking Times Defendants Testified at Trial, Ohio homicide detectives investigate two deaths as DNA helps identify skull and bones found decades ago, He just f***ing killed him!: Suspect identified after video shows shooter executing man in broad daylight in St. Louis, Manipulative psychic coached 20-something woman on bilking and kissing 80-year-old businessman: Prosecutors, Says it all: experts react to Buster Murdaughs facepalm during fathers testimony in double murder trial, Former NFL running back sentenced to jail following brutal video of attack on ex-girlfriend that went viral, is set to spend a year and a day in prison followed by two years of supervised release, LIVE: Closing statements begin in Alex Murdaugh double murder trial Day 25, Marilyn Manson accuser's sudden 180 won't get into court in Evan Rachel Wood case, judge rules, Alex Murdaugh has admitted to dozens of financial crimes and faces over 700 years in prison for those concessions alone, Ghislaine Maxwell appeal claims she was prosecuted to 'satisfy public outrage' over Jeffrey Epstein plea deal, jailhouse death, Unsealed search warrant reveals new evidence against accused quadruple murderer Bryan Kohberger in grisly fatal stabbings of Idaho students, Elderly Florida man caught with over one ton of printed child porn images in home: Sheriff, Man sentenced for stabbing 16-year-old boy in the heart in fight over another teens ex-girlfriend, Convicted murderer identified as suspect in 1980 cold case of 21-year-old N.J. woman found shot in the head in California, Florida man indicted for allegedly killing pregnant girlfriend who wanted to celebrate his murder acquittal, He grabbed him by his head and slit his throat: Girlfriend of slain news anchor provides grisly details of terrifying attack. Until this last spring, Kreuper was the principal of St. James Catholic School in Torrance and Chang was its vice . "Unfortunately . "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. On an annualized basis (approximately $83,000 per year), [Kreuper] stole the equivalent of the tuition of 14 different students per year, prosecutors argued in a sentencing memorandum. Officials said she would alter the checks by endorsing them with a stamp that read "St. James Convent" instead of "St. James School.". Mary Margaret Kreuper, 80, admitted stealing $835,000 while principal of an LA-area school. Your login session has expired. Some parents at her hearing said their children felt betrayed by her decision to take their tuition money. Over the course of the scheme, Kreuper admitted to causing $825,339 in losses to St. James Catholic School. Suite 1200 In court papers it was . The school became aware of the alleged embezzlement in a routine audit when one of the nuns retired as the school's principal. A locked padlock reporters on a platform technologically tailored to meet the needs of the modern reader. The charges carry up to 40. Mary Margaret Kreuper, 79, was charged with one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering on Tuesday and has agreed to a plea deal for allegedly embezzling $835,000 while she was the. I apologize for the public scandal, the embarrassment and the financial burden that I have placed on the sisters in my religious community, the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, St. James School, the parishioners, parents and students who placed their trust in me.. The family of Joseph includes many more than just the sisters. 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