WASHINGTON – A former teller for Department of Interior FCU pleaded guilty to stealing $25,110 of members’ deposits during a two-year period, from 2006 to 2008, and faces up to 10 years in prison when sentenced.
Monica Michaels, 36, used a number of methods to steal money on 25 different occasions, from the accounts of at least three members, two of whom were elderly and thus especially vulnerable victims, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office. Specifically, Michaels at times made cash withdrawals from the victims’ accounts, sometimes had other tellers make withdrawals at her request, which she said were for the victims, and on still other occasions transferred money from the victims’ accounts to her own or her mother’s account.
In addition, Michaels made unauthorized transfers of funds into and out of the victims’ accounts, from unrelated accounts, in order to conceal changes in the victims’ balances, and also flagged various accounts as "no mail" accounts so that the victims and others would not learn of the thefts and unauthorized transactions.
