80-year-old nun in US prison for stealing $835,000 to use for gambling

An elderly nun who siphoned off more than $800,000 earmarked for school plays from a Catholic school to spend on gambling and luxury tourism was sentenced Monday to a year in jail in the state of Washington. California.

Mary Margaret Kreuper of 80 years, opted for a life of poverty when he took his religious vows six decades ago, but running a Catholic elementary school near Los Angeles (west USA) diverted 835,000 dollars from school funds to gamble in Las Vegas, according to a California court.

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Kreuper also used some of the money to fund trips to luxury hotels in Lake Tahoe, a California-Nevada border resort where tourists ski in the winter and hike in the Sierra Nevada in the summer.

“I know that I have sinned, that I have broken the law, there are no excuses”Kreuper testified in court, according to the Los Angeles Times.

The nun ended up being sentenced to 12 months and one day behind bars, it was reported.

Kreuper acknowledged that her crimes violated her vows, “the commandments, the law, and all the sacred trust” placed in her by those responsible for the college.

Kreuper had previously admitted to fraud and money laundering during a court hearing last year.

The court was told how money that had been sent to Saint James Catholic School for charitable donations and student fees was diverted to secret accounts controlled by Kreuper.

When an accounting audit was about to be adjusted, the nun asked the center’s employees to destroy the documents that could incriminate her, according to the court file.

The Los Angeles Times also reported that when confronted by the local archdiocese, Kreuper argued that fathers were paid more than nuns and that she thought she deserved a raise.

Mark Byrne, Kreuper’s attorney, asked that she be allowed to serve her sentence at the convent where she had been since the crimes were exposed in 2018.

The professional also highlighted that the nun had become addicted to gambling.

“This is not an apology for what she did. It’s just an explanation,” he told the newspaper.

District Judge Otis D. Wright II told Kreuper that he had given the decision a lot of thought and acknowledged that she had been an excellent teacher for many years. “But at some point, he got completely out of the way, and I think he understands that. I hope you understand,” said the magistrate.

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Source: Elcomercio

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