ALEXANDRIA, Va. -- A former assistant branch manager at SELCO Community CU was barred from credit unions by NCUA this afternoon for stealing $147,000 from the credit union to pay for her gambling addiction.
Lenora Colburn, 49, was sentenced in January to home detention and community service and to repay the stolen funds, which caused an uproar in the local community for the lenience of the terms. SELCO representatives had asked the federal judge to send Colburn to prison, but the judge declined.
Colburn worked for SELCO from 1986 to May 2011 in a variety of positions, including teller supervisor, operations supervisor and assistant manager. Her position as a supervisor and an assistant manager allowed her to facilitate and conceal her embezzlement by creating phony cash transactions and manipulating cash drawer and vault balances, and branch audits.
Colburn’s attorney told the judge that his client fully admitted the embezzlement shortly after SELCO discovered the loss — which he said simplified separate investigations completed by the FBI and the credit union. He also noted that Colburn has pledged to repay the funds, showing a $77,000 personal check that he said Colburn wrote to the credit union after emptying her 401k retirement account.
Colburn enrolled herself in a 12-week gambling addiction treatment program that she completed successfully and is participating in continuing treatment, according to her attorney.
