ga('ads.send', { Mark Byrne, Kreupers attorney, acknowledged that Kreuper abused her trust, but called on Wright to sentence her to probation. She is very sorry for any harm she has caused.". ) or https:// means youve safely connected to the .gov website. }); },false) 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. At about $83,000 a year, the amount matches the tuition of 14 students a year, prosecutors said. As part of her efforts to suppress everything, she got school employees to change and destroy financial records during a school audit. Mary Margaret Kreuper, 79, is seen in this undated photo. hitType: 'event', Have a tip or story idea? Today, we commit to respond boldly to injustice and dare to be prophetic. But it doesnt mean hes a criminal, Rain check! Federal authorities charged 79-year-old Mary Margaret Kreuper with one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering for her role in the scheme while principal of St. James Catholic School . According to Meyers, Kreuper and Chang were able to get away with the alleged scheme for years because the school was profitable and the money the sisters took would have ended up in a reserve fund. They also urged Wright to keep in mind that her status as a nun helped her evade detection. eventCategory: event.slot.getSlotElementId(), As per the plea deal, Kreuper reportedly used the embezzled money to fund her personal expenses, including large gambling bets and vacations to Las Vegas, Lake Tahoe and Temecula. I got exactly what I paid for. Officials said she would alter the checks by endorsing them with a stamp that read "St. James Convent" instead of "St. James School.". if(document.querySelector("#google_image_div")){ 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. 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. A federal judge sentenced Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper, a nun and former Catholic school principal, to a year in prison for embezzling more than $835,000 from the school she ran to fund a more secular lifestyle including gambling trips. Now Mary Margaret Kreuper, 80, is set to spend a year and a day in prison followed by two years of supervised release. Sisters of St. Joseph of CarondeletFebruary 7, 2022February 14, 2022. 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.. 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. 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. 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. Officials with the archdiocese alleged the nuns spent some of the money on personal trips and gambling, the Press-Telegram reported. 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. if(document.querySelector("#ads")){ A lock ( Wright ordered Kreuper, who took a vow of poverty and whose living expenses are paid for by the order, to pay $835,339 in restitution to St. James. eventAction: 'click_ads' LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) Mary Margaret Kreuper, a now-retired nun who was the principal of St. James Catholic School in Torrance, has agreed to plead guilty to fraud and money laundering charges for. window.googletag.cmd.push(function() { U.S. District Judge Otis D. Wright II has set sentencing for February 7, 2022, when he would expect her to make a statement. Central District of California (Los Angeles) Secure .gov websites use HTTPS Notifications can be turned off anytime from browser settings. Public Information Officer Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper, the retired principal of St. James Catholic School in California, has been sentenced to one year and a day in prison on charges of money laundering and federal wire fraud for embezzling nearly $835,000 from school funds. "We. 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. (CBSLA). "I don't have to worry about b.s. Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper, 80, who took a vow of poverty, begged a judge to show . pg.acq.push(function() { 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.. Assistant United States Attorney Poonam G Kumar of the Major Frauds Section is prosecuting the case. }); 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. Emailus. As a Catholic nun, Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper had taken a vow of poverty. United States Attorneys Office 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. Mary Margaret Kreuper, 80, was sentenced to a year and a day in federal prison and ordered to pay $825,338 in restitution, the U.S. Attorney's Office said. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. 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. Mary Margaret Kreuper, 79, of Los Angeles, was charged last month with one count each of wire fraud and money laundering for embezzling the money over the span of 10 years, up until 2018, the . 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. eventAction: 'render' Kreuper pleaded guilty in July 2021 to one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering. Kreuper controlled accounts at a credit union, including a savings account for the school and one established to pay the . 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.. Prosecutors told the judge Kreuper deserved prison time for stealing parents checks to the school over and over and over again for a decade, then ordering staff to destroy records in a coverup. hitType: 'event', She pleaded guilty last July . Mary Margaret Kreuper, 80, admitted stealing $835,000 while principal of an LA-area school. June 8, 2021 / 8:30 PM Church officials previously said they did not want to press criminal charges against the nuns. Our congregation was founded in St. Louis in 1836, and since then we have formed additional communities and provinces around the world. Kreuper, who had taken a vow of poverty, admitted in the plea agreement to diverting school funds into the St. James Convent account and the St. James savings account and then using 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. 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. } When an audit threatened to expose the scheme, Kreuper instructed St. James employees to destroy documents. Sister Mary took responsibility for her actions by pleading guilty. The charges against the 79-year-old were leveled on Tuesday, June 8, and prosecutors at the same time filed a plea agreement. 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.. 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. Mary Margaret Kreuper was the principal of the elementary school for 28 years. MEAWW brings you the best content from its global team of 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. 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. 2021 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet are a congregation of Catholic sisters. hitType: 'event', A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States. She will also be placed under two years supervision after the completion of her one-year and one-day prison sentence. Have a question about Government Services? 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 . Check out never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more! 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, according to a release from the U.S. attorney's. Mary Margaret Kreuper, 80, of . 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.. Love of God is at the heart of our charism. A locked padlock Mary Margaret Kreuper, 80, of Los Angeles, pleaded guilty in July to federal wire fraud and money laundering charges. 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. window.googletag.pubads().addEventListener('slotRenderEnded', function(event) { hitType: 'event', Official websites use .gov A retired nun accused of gambling with the funds of a Torrance Catholic school where she worked as the principal faces federal prison time after pleading gui. 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. Until this last spring, Kreuper was the principal of St. James Catholic School in Torrance and Chang was its vice . We seek to build communities and bridge divides between people. This is not an excuse for what she did, he said. Suite 1200 READ ALSO | 2 nuns accused of embezzling 'substantial' amount from Catholic school in Torrance. 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. Trust shouldnt be broken like that., Kevin Kearns, who met Kreuper in 2011 when he enrolled his son in kindergarten at St. James, asked Wright to show leniency, saying she put the students and parents above everything else., The church tells us to forgive those who have trespassed against us, Kearns said. The Torrance Police Department, the FBI and IRS Criminal Investigation conducted the investigation in this matter. Bank records show Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper and Sister Lana Chang had been embezzling funds from St. James Catholic School in Torrance for at least a decade, the Press-Telegram reported. 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 in prison on Monday. According to authorities, she spent 10 years embezzling money from St. James Catholic School where she served as principal. Prosecutors had recommended a 24-month prison sentence, three years of. According to the plea agreement, Kreuper embezzled money from St. James for a period of 10 years ending in September 2018. She diverted tuition to a secret account, which she used to fund casino trips, prosecutors said. As part of her role as the head of the institution, Kreuper oversaw all funds the school received for tuition fees and charitable donations. In July, she pleaded guilty to one count each of. 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.. 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