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. 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. She spent the next 59 years of her life dedicated to the church, they said. Kreuper was 18 years old when she took vows of poverty, chastity and obedience, her lawyers told the Post. In these records you will find the most recent and the most authoritative articles on the topics, people and events that are shaping the . They dont want you to see this Big Tech does its best to limit what news you see. Image Via Scott Varley/Digital First Media/ Torrance Daily Breeze via Getty Images. BroBible is the #1 place on the internet for the very best content from the worlds of sports, culture, gear, high tech, and more. The schools, "have never asserted that either of [the teachers] fell short in any religious duty or adherence to the faith," he says. Kumar said the nuns instruction to the auditors sparked suspicion, and they reported the incident to Msgr. She admitted to taking a total of $835,000 in donations from the elementary school, and faces up to 40 years in federal prison. She is set to be arraigned in court on July 1. Sister Mary Margaret and Sister Lana were both Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet. Sister Lana Chang, a vice principal who was initially implicated in the scheme, was not charged. As principal of St. James Catholic School, she oversaw the money the school received to pay for tuition and fees as well as charitable donations. Kreuper has agreed to plead guilty to the charges in a deal with prosecutors, the US Attorney's Office of California said in a statement. Cyclist falls to her death after drawbridge opens while shes on it, Trump tells Joe Rogan to stop apologizing for Spotify controversies, Frozen out of GoFundMe, Canadian protest convoy raises millions on Christian sit. Starting in 2008, Kreuper diverted school funds to pay for expenses that the order would not have approved, much less paid for, prosecutors say. The Torrance Police Department, the FBI and IRS Criminal Investigation conducted the investigation into the allegations against Kreuper. Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper, who worked as the school principal for 28 years, and Sister Lana Chang, a teacher at the school for 20 years, reportedly bilked the funds over a period of at least a . But Fisher counters that function can't be the only criterion because many employers at religiously affiliated institutions sincerely believe that all of their employees perform important ministerial functions, from nurses who care for the sick, to summer camp counselors for troubled teenagers, and athletic coaches who mold the character of their charges and often lead them in prayer. When first confronted, Mr Kumar said, the nun claimed she "did it in part because she believes priests get paid better than nuns". 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. "She doesn't have anywhere to go," he said. She was also entrusted with overseeing the St. James Covenant Account, a savings account that funded the living expenses of the nuns who worked at the school, the indictment against her states. Despite the ongoing thefts, financial statements revealed the church continuing to operate in the black as the two sisters clandestinely plowed through church funds. For more information about our use of cookies, our collection, use, and disclosure of personal information generally, and any rights you may have to access, delete, or opt out of the sale of your personal information, please view our Privacy Policy. Dan Mac Guill is a former writer for Snopes. (RNS) Recently Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper, a Catholic nun who stole $835,000 from a Catholic elementary school in Torrance, California, was sent to prison for a year and ordered to pay the . Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper, who was principal of St. James Catholic School in Torrance, California, used the school funds to . The vow leads a nun to imitate Jesus, who for our sake became poor, although he was rich. Apparently, the Vegas trips were common knowledge, but the nuns explained that the gambling excursions were gifts from a rich uncle. But the court's eventual decision could reach beyond teachers, affecting the lives of millions of other employees who work for religiously affiliated institutions. She also controlled two savings accounts, one for the school and one for the nuns living expenses. Those reports were accurate, and we are issuing a rating of "True.". It is "telling," in these cases, he says, that the "teachers did not even have to be Catholic to have these jobs.". 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.. 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". There is another, and rather rich, twist to one of the cases before the court Monday. She doesn't have any money. When she announced she was retiring in September 2018, the archdiocese conducted a financial review for the incoming principal. Kreuper admitted embezzling about $835,000 (616,000) in donations, tuition and fee money between 2008 and 2018. 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. Associate Editor at BroBible covering all five major sports and every niche sport imaginable, found primarily in the college space. Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper, 79, a former principal at St James Catholic School in Torrance, California, used tuition fees and donations to subsidize casino gambling expenses and credit card payments, the authorities said. Investigators described a system in which Kreuper handled all checks made out to the school for tuition and fees before handing them over to bookkeeping staff for processing. Maryland man, 52, sues bar over ban cause he was old Missouri daughter secretly donates kidney to ailing dad. All they needed to do was get through the school year. She, too, retired in 2018. St.James Catholic School caught embezzling $500K for personal use, including gambling as church declines to press charges. Kreuper was in charge of the schools credit union account, where she was meant to deposit cash and checks from tuition, fees and donations. In a statement to The Washington Post, Kreupers lawyers said she is very remorseful and sorry for any harm she has caused. Parents said the two nuns were big on moral. It's just that you have to look and see what kind of function are they doing.". "Millions of people across the country who never thought or understood themselves to be leaders of the faith" would now "magically have no employment protections," he says. As soon as she was confronted, she accepted full responsibility for what she had done and she has cooperated completely with law enforcement and the archdiocese, the statement said, adding that she has been suffering from a mental illness that clouded her judgment. 15 Episodes of Seinfeld That Teach Everything You Need To Know About Life. Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper used tuition fees and donations to a California Catholic school to subsidize her casino expenses. Mark Byrne, Kreupers attorney, told The Post his client had accepted the judges one-year prison sentence, even if they were pushing for probation. He added, Its not meant as an excuse. She really didnt stay true to it at all, actually. ", "Just as teaching science out of a fifth-grade textbook doesn't make them scientists, teaching religion for 40 minutes a day out of a workbook doesn't make them ministers," he says. (Shutterstock) LOS ANGELES, CA The retired principal of a Catholic . Her husband, Darryl Biel, remembers that day vividly. American sister stole money from accounts she controlled as a headteacher and used it to pay off credit card charges and "large gambling expenses incurred at casinos". G7 summit - Biden brings 1.2m Cadillac The Beast but will it fit down Cornwalls tiny country lanes. She betrayed the trust of people in the community, the parents, students, the archdiocese and the sisters. Were those functions to be considered ministerial, Fisher says, the results would be dire. The Rev. It wasnt until the house of cards came crashing down that she realized what she had done and started to go therapy, where she realized this addiction was a contributing factor. His . This large chunk of stolen money came as the St. James Catholic School was operating under tight budgets with small concerns that the finances could not continue to keep the door open. Mary Margaret Kreuper was so close to getting away with it. One parent told the outlet of the situation: "It's crazy. 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. When this was going on, she was not nearly as old. Along with her sentence, she was ordered to pay $825,338 in restitution. Kreuper is due in court on 1 July and faces up to 40 years in federal prison. They say she also instructed employees at the school to alter and destroy financial records during a school audit, investigators found. Investigators determined the money went to accounts the school didnt know about, Kumar said. "I wanted to face them. The sisters, described as best friends, both retired earlier this year. 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. She faces up to 40 years in federal prison, but is claiming mental illness. Local 10 News reported Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper and Sister Lana Chang of St.James Catholic School (both retiring earlier this year) using money from the school's funds to live a life of luxury over the last ten years. I have sinned, Ive broken the law and I have no excuses, Kreuper said at the sentencing over Zoom. 2022 Blaze Media LLC. Similar articles were published by the Los Angeles Times, KTLA, and Unilad.co.uk. "As soon as she was confronted she accepted full responsibility for what she had done and she has cooperated completely with law enforcement and the Archdiocese,the pair said in a joint statement. zergnet.src = (document.location.protocol == "https:" ? 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. ", Church says nuns embezzled from SoCal school to cover Vegas gambling tripswww.youtube.com. She would endorse the checks with a stamp saying St. })(); Adriana Kuch attackers identified on social media in planned attack, St Louis execution shooting of homeless man: arrest made, Karen calls cops on black men shovelling snow for free outsider her home, Idaho murder suspect had multiple photos of female victim on phone, Torrance Catholic school nuns steal $500K for gambling habit- church resists charges. These nuns took a vow of poverty and said, Oh no, weve got a rich uncle, parent Jack Alexander said. Kobe Bryant's widow awarded nearly $29m after police shared photos of helicopter crash, Doctors recommend end-of-life decision for Saving Private Ryan actor Tom Sizemore, Ramon Escobar: Serial murderer suspected of killing prison inmate. (RELATED: Nuns Allegedly Stole Catholic School Funds For Years: Report). "Such action interferes with the internal governance of the church, depriving the church of control over the selection of those who will personify its beliefs.". The now-retired nun (I didnt know nuns could retire) admitted to stealing about $835,000 in donations, tuition and fees. Is A Hot Dog A Sandwich? All rights reserved. By Megan Carpentier. Sister Mary Margaret became a nun when she turned 18 in 1960 and took a vow of poverty. According to Newstalk.com, the school indicated in a letter to parents at the time that they did not want to pursue criminal charges against the duo, after they both expressed "desire and inten[t] to make complete restitution to St. James School.". In her plea agreement, Sister Mary Margaret confirmed that the stolen money was used for credit card charges and large gambling expenses incurred at casinos. the U.S. attorneys office said. Indeed, he observes, they would be exempt not just from anti-discrimination laws, but also laws that protect individuals from retaliation when they report misbehavior to authorities, and laws imposing wage and hour regulations. In total, across a period of 10 years, Kreuper siphoned $835,339 from the school's accounts. Nun who stole $835K from school to fund gambling habit is going to prison: I have sinned, Carolyn Hax: Boyfriends visits leave single mom with no time for herself, Miss Manners: What to do when a fellow diner was rude to server. We do know that they had a pattern of going on trips. The exception extends to religiously affiliated institutions when they fire employees who serve in a religious capacity akin to that of a minister. Sister Mary Margarets lawyers said that she is very remorseful, and has been suffering from a mental illness that clouded her judgement and caused her to do something that she otherwise would not have done.. His findings unraveled the entire scheme and, eventually, federal charges were levied against Sister Mary Margaret. But. Copyright 2008-2023 BroBible. St. James teacher Lana Chang admitted along with Kreuper to the embezzlement in 2018, following each of their retirements earlier that year. (deployads = window.deployads || []).push({}); (function() { 66 is still a fairly competent age. Two nuns who formerly worked at St. James Catholic School in Torrance, California, confessed to embezzling at least $500,000 from the school so that they could gamble it away at Las Vegas casinos, the Archdiocese of Los Angeles said at a meeting with parents and alumni on Monday. 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