According to the plea agreement, Kreuper embezzled money from St. James for a period of 10 years ending in September 2018. reporters on a platform technologically tailored to meet the needs of the modern reader. 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. You can be proud of that, he said. U.S. District Judge Otis D. Wright II has set sentencing for February 7, 2022, when he would expect her to make a statement. 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. Lock eventAction: 'click_ads' 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. ga('ads.send', { if(document.querySelector("#google_image_div")){ eventAction: 'load' 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. Emailus. We, and those who share our charism and mission, are motivated in all things by our profound love of God and our dear neighbors. Poonam Kumar told the judge. I got exactly what I paid for. Prosecutors alleged that she was also responsible for controlling credit union accounts, including a savings account for the school and another account to pay the living expenses of nuns hired by the institution. The Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet are a congregation of Catholic sisters. "They and their Order pray that you have not lost trust or faith in the educators and administrators of the school. Central District of California (Los Angeles) Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper, was sentenced to one year and one day for fraud and money laundering. We do know that they had a pattern of going on trips. 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. As part of her efforts to suppress everything, she got school employees to change and destroy financial records during a school audit. (CBSLA). A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States. 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. She convinced school administration into thinking everything was on the up and up. }); 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. Parent and former school secretaryCheryl Hugo reportedly called Kreupers actions an abuse of power in every possible way.. 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. "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. 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And I don't look at nuns as ordinary people. This is merely an explanation.. }); (Youtube/KCAL) 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. [emailprotected]. 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.. Justice for others and for ourselves is a deep value held by the Sisters of St. Joseph. Your login session has expired. We seek to build communities and bridge divides between people. 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. She was sentenced to prison on Monday, February 7, 2022, for embezzling hundreds of thousands of dollars from the school funds. eventCategory: event.slot.getSlotElementId(), Who is Mary Margaret Kreuper? 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. At the prosecutors request, the judge later lowered the amount by $10,000 to account for what she has already repaid. He previously covered state and national politics, including the 2020 presidential campaign. We are one of the worlds fastest growing hitType: 'event', 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. First published on June 8, 2021 / 8:30 PM. For 10 years until September 2018, prosecutors say she bilked the facility for money. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. "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. I havent slept well in God knows how long, Wright told a Zoom hearing audience, rejecting prosecutors call for a two-year term and saying he could not bring himself to judge Kreuper solely on the worst thing that shes done in her life.. 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. After reviewing all the letters, Wright said, it appeared most families had forgiven Kreuper. }); However, the nun started diverting the money into secret accounts in 2008 to fund her gambling habits and personal credit card charges. eventCategory: event.slot.getSlotElementId(), Get an all-access pass to never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more! Officials said Kreuper and Chang used a large portion of the stolen funds for "personal gains" and "recycled" some of it back into the school, the Press-Telegram reported. Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper was just 18 years old when she took vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. 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. I have sinned, I have broken the law, and I have no excuses, Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper, the former principal of St. James Catholic School, told the judge. 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 investigation into this matter is being conducted by the Torrance Police Department, the FBI, and IRS Criminal Investigation. 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. She called her crimes a violation of my vows, the commandments, the law, and above all the sacred trust that so many had placed in me.. Los Angeles, California 90012. 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. For three years, Byrne told the judge, the nuns in her order have kept her under severe restrictions at a convent. 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. Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper is an 80-year-old nun from Torrance and a former principal of St. James Catholic School. Our congregation was founded in St. Louis in 1836, and since then we have formed additional communities and provinces around the world. 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. They and their order pray that you have not lost trust or faith in the educators and administrators of the school. Minyvonne Burkeis a senior breaking news reporter for NBC News. Have a tip we should know? She even attempted to destroy documents when an audit nearly exposed her arrangement. "They were just such staunch defenders of moral fortitude, they were really tough on the kids," she said. . When an audit threatened to expose the scheme, Kreuper instructed St. James employees to destroy documents. 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. 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. Online prison records do not yet show Kreuper in federal custody. 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. 'I have sinned, I've broken the law and I . We also deeply value relationships. I have sinned, Kreuper said during a Monday teleconference, according to The New York Daily News. On Monday night, the Archdiocese of Los Angeles told parents and alumni at a meeting that Sisters Mary Margaret Kreuper and Lana Chang, described as best friends, took around $500,000 from St. James Catholic School in Torrance, according to an audio recording of the meeting obtained by the Press-Telegram. As principal -- a position she had for nearly 30 years before she retired -- Kreuper was responsible for the money the school received to pay for tuition and fees, as well as for charitable donations, according to documents filed in Los Angeles federal court. 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. The charges carry up to 40. 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. }) She is very sorry for any harm she has caused.''. I was wrong and Im profoundly sorry for the pain and suffering Ive caused so many people.. eventAction: 'click_adunit' 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. At about $83,000 a year, the amount matches the tuition of 14 students a year, prosecutors said. }); 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. 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. Church officials previously said they did not want to press criminal charges against the nuns. My actions were in violation of my vows, my commandments, the law and, above all, the sacred trust that so many had placed in me. Michael Finnegan is a Los Angeles Times reporter covering federal courts and law enforcement. 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, 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. "Unfortunately . ga('ads.send', { Mary Margaret Kreuper, a retired nun who served as principal of a Catholic elementary school in Torrance, California, for 28 years, agreed on Tuesday to plead guilty to fraud and money laundering. Kreuper also directed St. James School employees to alter and destroy financial records during a school audit. Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper, 79, of Los Angeles, was charged with one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering on Tuesday for defrauding St. James Catholic School over a period . A nun is pictured at Vatican's Gregorian University. 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. 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. Check out an array of spirituality resources. 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 stealing more than $835,000 in school funds to pay for personal expenses, including gambling trips, federal prosecutors said Tuesday. 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