Sisters Mary Margaret Krueper, left, and Lana Chang. She diverted school funds into the St. James Convent Account and the St. James Savings Account, which were used "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," the Department of Justice stated. news, guides, reviews and information since 1995. At the time of Flynns reporting, St. James School estimated the two women embezzled around $500,000. Sister Mary Kreuper served as the principal at St. James Catholic School in Torrance, California, for 28 years. 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. He added that an expert report explained she had a gambling addiction. We do know that they had a pattern of going on trips. 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. Kumar added Kreupers scheme was revealed after the school performed an informal audit shortly after the nun announced she would be retiring as principal in 2018. Police have been informed but the Archdiocese does not intend to pursue criminal proceedings against the sisters. Police said they were still carrying out their own investigation. The rich uncle was the parents of the St. James students," he said. ", But a 12-year-old said Kreuper was "just like any other robber.". At the time, the church and archdiocese said that they would not press criminal charges against either woman. Eventually, a forensic accountant discovered that there was a half-million dollars missing from the schools accounts. 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We do know they had a pattern of going to casinos, and the reality is, they used the account as their personal account, the attorney told the crowd at the meeting. This story has been updated to correct the spelling of Torrance and Sister Lana Chang. Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Southern California authorities have revealed two nuns allegedly embezzling up to $500K which was parlayed . Kreuper was the schools principal for 29 years. Sister Mary Margaret admitted to a fraudulent scheme in which she lulled St. James School and the administration into believing that the schools finances were being properly accounted for and its financial assets properly safeguarded, prosecutors said. According to documents accompanying the plea agreement, Sister Mary Margaret diverted school funds into the schools convent account and its federal credit union savings account, and then used the money for expenses that the order would not have approved, much less paid for, including large gambling expenses at casinos in Nevada and credit card charges. Principal, Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper, and teacher Sister Lana Chang. https://t.co/fsUwStYj3J. Kreuper's attorney Mark Byrne explained that his client, who retired in 2018, has been under strict supervision at her convent. Heres what you need to know: An internal investigation found that over several years, Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper and Sister Lana Chang used funds set aside for St. James Catholic School. Los Angeles Archdiocese of Los Angeles Gambling nuns nuns Las Vegas Saint James Catholic School . "I have sinned, I have broken the law, and I have no excuses," Kreuper told U.S. District Judge Otis D. Wright II, Los Angeles Times reported. Wikimedia CommonsKreuper used the stolen funds for personal expenses like paying off credit cards but primarily to finance her gambling habit at casinos across Nevada. (Youtube/KCAL) Listen "These nuns took a vow of poverty and said, 'Oh no, we've got a rich uncle'. 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While Kreuper spent the schools funds on gambling trips, the former principal continued to ask parents to donate more money to the school on top of their $6,000 annual tuition. 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. The statement also condemned the embezzlement, saying, we will not defend the actions of our Sisters. Sign up for PEOPLE's free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases. Regardless, dont trust any nun who absolutely crushes Texas Holdem, and read Flynns original story here. By clicking Accept All Cookies, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper and Sister Lana Chang were seen as two of the strictest nuns at St James Catholic School in Torrance, California. Kreuper was only exposed when she retired in 2018 and the Archdiocese of Los Angeles noted some irregularities in the schools bookkeeping while searching for her replacement. So there were a considerable number of parents who were very upset and obviously feeling quite betrayed. She also managed several of the schools bank accounts, including one that had been set up to pay the living expenses of the other nuns who worked there. Kreuper, 79, could get sentenced to up to 40 years behind bars. Let us pray for our school families and for Sister Mary Margaret and Sister Lana," Myers added . She confessed after the diocese hired an ex-FBI agent to grill staff members at the school. Mary Margaret Kreuper, principal of St. James Catholic School in Torrance, Calif., until 2018, was charged with stealing more than $835,000 in school funds to pay for personal expenses, including gambling trips. Sisters Mary Margaret Kreuper and Lana Chang, who belong to the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet, are suspected of embezzling a "substantial" amount of money from a Catholic school in. Powered by. As it stands, the Los Angeles Archdiocese said it was shocked and saddened.. Kreupers crimes occurred during her role as the schools principal, a position from which she retired in 2018. They were able to get away with it because the school was doing so well, financially, that nobody ever missed the money. She'd taught fifth grade at Our Lady of Las Vegas . "Our community is concerned and saddened by this situation and regret any injury to our long relationship with the families of the school," the Order said in a statement. Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper admitted embezzling $835,000 from St James Catholic School in the LA suburb of Torrance. However, Sister Kreuper wasnt alone in her scheme. As soon as she was confronted, she accepted full responsibility for what she had done and she has cooperated fully with law enforcement and the Archdiocese. 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.. Photo by PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images, 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. Graf said: "We do know that they had a pattern of going on trips, we do know they had a pattern of going to casinos, and the reality is, they used the account as their personal account.". A great part of her early education came from her mother, who consulted the Spanish humanist Juan Luis Vives for advice and commissioned him to write De Institutione Feminae Christianae, a treatise on the . They were angry that their children had been denied new facilities at the school because of Kreupers transgressions. Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper of Los Angeles will serve one year, and one day, behind federal prison bars for fraud and money laundering charges. Kreuper is also accused of directing school employees to alter and destroy financial records while the audit was in process. So shes basically under house arrest, which she accepts.. Many of the letters I cited and many of the people who spoke, talked about wanting something more from their childrens education. In California, a septuagenarian nun faces up to 40 years in prison after pleading guilty to federal fraud and money laundering charges. Officials also say that as they audit started, Sister Mary Margaret started to seem very anxious they say that she even asked people to falsify information for her. We had a lot of letters from parents and students who knew about the fact that she had taken the money, and presumably the money was taken from them, and yet they found it in their hearts to forgive her, Byrne said. While investigators found the two gave some of the stolen money back to the school, the rest was used for their "personal gain." But this week, prosecutors said Sister Mary Margaret, 79, had agreed to plead guilty to stealing more than. But according to the US Attorneys Office Central District of California, Kreuper 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.. Anyone can read what you share. Instead, the school's principal, Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper, 79, was stealing the money and using it to bankroll her gambling habit, federal prosecutors said, violating her vow of. Sisters of St. Joseph of CarondeletSister Lana Chang worked alongside Sister Kreuper for 20 years, at least 10 of which they spent embezzling the schools money together. There have been calls among some parents for the pair to be charged while others said they should be forgiven. They added that 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., They said Sister Mary Margaret became a nun when she was 18, and for the next 59 years she dedicated her life to helping others and educating children in Archdiocesan schools.. But not all the parishioners were as understanding. But somewhere along the line, you just ran completely off the road, and I think you understand that. Substantial amount of school funds for their personal use.https://t.co/nIiuz3JiDR, Dalton (@DaltonReport) December 1, 2018. There were parents who spoke today about how their kids are no longer affiliated with the church.. One of the things she said when she was first confronted by the LA Archdiocese and even before law enforcement got involved was she did it in part because she believes priests get paid better than nuns, Kumar told The Post. They wanted to get a Catholic education with the morals and values that they believed in and that they lead their lives in, and thats what they were looking for in the school. "Pop Dick Stabile ", as he was known to those who loved . An 80-year-old nun who gambled away more than $835,000 in school funds was sentenced to twelve months and a day in federal prison Monday, according to a press release from the United States Department of Justice (DOJ). She broke the law, she has no excuses for it and she took full responsibility.. Kreuper even took fellow nuns on some of those excursions and spent thousands of the elementary schools money, Kumar said. Sister Mary Margaret Kreuper, 79, was charged Tuesday with wire fraud and money laundering for ripping off St. James Catholic School for a period of 10 years ending in September 2018, according to a press release from the US Attorneys Office in the Central District of California. 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