sister mary margaret kreuper

Kreuper signed the plea agreement, which Snopes has obtained and which can be read in full here, on June 2, 2021. James Convent, not St. znscr.parentNode.insertBefore(zergnet, znscr); During his sentencing, Wright, a 2007 appointee under President George W. Bush, praised Kreuper for her tenure as one heck of a teacher at the school. All rights reserved. His findings unraveled the entire scheme and, eventually, federal charges were levied against Sister Mary Margaret. One article quoted a church accountant as ball-parking the amount at $500,000. var zergnet = document.createElement('script'); Trust shouldnt be broken like that., Others, such as Kevin Kearns, whose son had gone to the school, said the nun had put the students and parents above everything else., The church tells us to forgive those who have trespassed against us, Kearns said. After much public outcry to pursue legal action, the archdiocese hired a former FBI agent to investigate the two nuns. The two holy women were eventually caught out after a recent audit. Mary Margaret Kreuper of Los Angeles was sentenced to one year and a day in prison after pleading guilty in July 2021 to one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering, according. She just enjoyed gambling, he said. Similar articles were published by the Los Angeles Times, KTLA, and Unilad.co.uk. But when it came to the vow of poverty, the Southern California nun struggled to maintain her promise to the Catholic Church because of a gambling addiction that was out of control for a decade. By signing up to the Blaze News newsletter you agree to receive electronic communications from Blaze Media that may sometimes include advertisements or sponsored content. When first confronted, Mr Kumar said, the nun claimed she "did it in part because she believes priests get paid better than nuns". I was wrong, and Im profoundly sorry for the pain and suffering Ive caused so many people., Despite her vow of poverty, nun stole more than $835,000 from a Catholic school, prosecutors said. She wanted more than she had.. But Fisher notes that the schools in these cases do not claim any religious reason for firing the teachers. Kreuper admitted embezzling about $835,000 (616,000) in donations, tuition and fee money between 2008 and 2018. Is A Hot Dog A Sandwich? The purpose is to protect leaders of the faith, and their religions, from interference by the government. The St. James Catholic Church school in Torrance, California, on February 7, 2022. A spokesperson for the order confirmed for Snopes that, as of June 9, 2021, Kreuper was still a member of the Los Angeles congregation, but the restrictions against her remained in place, and she was no longer involved in any public ministry. They have been removed from their residence, placed in a religious house under the supervision of community leadership, and their freedom of movement is confined.". Along with her sentence, she was ordered to pay $825,338 in restitution. Mary Margaret Kreuper was so close to getting away with it. 5 Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper, 79, of Los Angeles, was charged with one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering Credit: KCAL 9 5 The Greatest Food Debates Of All Time, Answered Pineapple On Pizza? Recap: Court Weighs Whether Religious Schools Can Fire Lay Workers, Listen Live: Supreme Court Arguments Schedule, Top 5 Moments From The Supreme Court's 1st Week Of Livestreaming Arguments, Fervor Vs Compromise At Supreme Court Birth Control Arguments, Supreme Court Arguments A Tech Success, But Format Strangles Usual Give-And-Take, Supreme Court Considers Anti-Prostitution Pledge In HIV/AIDS Funding Case. A spokesperson with St. James did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday. I, for one, absolutely love this move. Asking for the nun to be spared from prison, her lawyer Mark Byrne told the court she has been kept under "severe restrictions" at a convent by the nuns in her order. Although, formally speaking, Kreuper could face a punishment of up to 40 years in prison, it's unlikely she will receive such a long sentence. 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 defraudingSt. James Catholic Schoolover a period of 10 years. The rich uncle was the parents of the St. James students., The school monsignor has since sent out a letter in which the nuns asked that i convey to you the deep remorse they each feel for their actions and ask for your forgiveness and prayers.. (RELATED: Nuns Allegedly Stole Catholic School Funds For Years: Report). Kreuper, who pleaded guilty last summer to one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering, was also ordered by U.S. District Judge Otis D. Wright II to pay more than $825,000 in restitution. He argued that while the money she stole might have affected the schools funding, her actions didnt decrease the quality of education students received at St. James. 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. Prosecutors say the nun also ordered school employees to alter and destroy financial records during the audit. This article was published more than1 year ago. Kreuper, who took vows of poverty at age 18 and spent 59 years in the religious order, said in her plea agreement that she had begun diverting money from the schools tuition and donation account to a savings account that funded the living expenses of the nuns who worked at the school and then used some of the money herself. Margaret Mary Kreuper and Sister Lana Chang were accused of embezzling tuition, fees, and donations made in favor of St. James Catholic School to fund their gambling trips (Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet) Kreuper is also accused of directing St. James School employees to alter and destroy financial records during a school audit. She faces up to 40 years in federal prison, but is claiming mental illness. A Los Angeles nun jailed for stealing more than $800,000 to fund a gambling habit has admitted "I have sinned". 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. A retired nun has admitted to embezzling $835,000 over 10 years from a Catholic school in California to fund her gambling habit, according to federal prosecutors. The sisters, described as best friends, both retired earlier this year. Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper, 79, was charged with one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering after she admitted to investigators that she embezzled hundreds of thousands of. After taking a vow of poverty, her excuse for lavish gambling expenses is hilarious. He said he could not bring himself to judge Kreuper solely on "the worst thing that she's done in her life", the LA Times said. Kreuper as the school's principal, handled all tuition payments, with the sister depositing checks into a separate . St. James teacher Lana Chang admitted along with Kreuper to the embezzlement in 2018, following each of their retirements earlier that year. As principal, Kreuper had been in charge of the school's credit union account, where she was meant to deposit cash and checks from tuition, fees and donations. Mr Kumar said that jealousy played a part, calling the episode "really an abuse of position of trust". She was so hurt that they could be doing this to her.". var znscr = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; Southern California authorities have revealed two nuns allegedly embezzling up to $500K which was parlayed into gambling jaunts in Las Vegas. Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper was sentenced to a year and a day in federal prison, months after she admitted to stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from St. James Catholic School in Torrance . As principal of St. James Catholic School in Torrance, California, she certainly did but while also embezzling more than $835,000 in funds to support her secretive gambling habit. Starting in 2008, Kreuper diverted school funds to pay for expenses that the order would not have approved, much less paid for, prosecutors say. 2023 NYP Holdings, Inc. All Rights Reserved, Nun stops burglary with quick thinking and prayers: This is Gods property, Sister Andre, the worlds oldest living person, dies at 118, I was a celibate nun for 24 years then fell in love with a Catholic monk, Priest accused of inviting two nuns to take part in a threesome. In June 2021, several local, national, and international news outlets reported that a nun in California had admitted, and was preparing to plead guilty to, embezzling $835,000 from the Catholic school she ran for three decades. An old unused bank account was the giveaway. Michael Meyers, the pastor at St. James Church. Five of the nine justices hearing Monday's case attended Catholic secondary schools, and several of them have sent their children to parochial schools as well. The money she stole was used to pay off credit card charges and "large gambling expenses incurred at casinos", the US attorney's office said. Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper had taken a vow of poverty. I wanted to see them. Kreuper, who had taken a vow of poverty as a nun, worked as a principal at St. James Catholic School in Torrance for 28 years and allegedly embezzled the funds for 10 years until her retirement in 2018. She betrayed the trust of people in the community, the parents, students, the archdiocese and the sisters. The nun took frequent gambling trips to Las Vegas and holidays to Lake Tahoe and other locations in southern California, according to Poonam Kumar, the assistant US attorney. The two announced their retirement at the same time and were on their way out in 2018. The schools denied that Morrissey-Berru and Biel were fired for discriminatory reasons. I promised her I would see this through," he says. She became principal at St. James Catholic School, about 20 miles outside downtown Los Angeles, in 1990. Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper, 80, was sentenced on Monday to 12 months and one day in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Otis D. Wright II and ordered to pay $825,338 in restitution to the St. James Catholic School in Torrance, California . In June 2021, Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper admitted to embezzling $835,000 from the Catholic school where she served as principal for 28 years. Earlier in June, the former principal of St. James School was charged with wire fraud and money laundering. However, the church chose not to press charges against the two nuns. In the process, Kreuper falsified monthly and annual reports to the St. James 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. Make sure you see our stories daily directly to your inbox. According to prosecutors, Kreuper admitted that she 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.. In these records you will find the most recent and the most authoritative articles on the topics, people and events that are shaping the . That was the first clue that unraveled a significant scheme. 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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 wrote in a letter to parents on Nov. 28. Ultimately, he argues, the schools consider the teachers to be performing an important religious function, and therefore, they can be fired for any reason because they are not subject to the nation's fair employment laws. At the time, the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet imposed restrictions on the two women, writing in a news release that: "The two Sisters are removed from all public ministry. On June 9, for example, Fox News reported that: A retired Los Angeles nun will plead guilty to embezzling $835,000 from the elementary school where she worked in order to cover her gambling habits and other personal expenses, officials said this week. Court documents show that she also oversaw the St. James Convent Account, a savings account that funded the living expenses of the nuns who worked at the school. 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. Sister Lana Chang, a vice principal who was initially implicated in the scheme, was not charged. Months after Kreuper admitted to stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars, the 80-year-old was sentenced on Monday to a year and a day in federal prison. When the fraudulent behavior first came to light, the order was deeply disappointed and offered to repay the lost funds only believed to be $500,000 at the time. Through, '' he says fired for discriminatory reasons the nun also ordered school employees to alter and financial... Ordered to pay $ 825,338 in restitution articles were published by the Los Angeles Times,,... 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