LONGVIEW, Wash. – The vault manager at Cowlitz CU was sentenced yesterday to 90 days in jail, to the dismay of the state judge who wanted a longer sentence for her theft of $120,000 she and her husband used to gamble at the nearby Lucky Eagle Casino.
Judge Stephen Warning said he wished he could have given Roxane Ramey, 55, more jail time, but his "hands were tied" by sentencing guidelines set by the Legislature. "This is a joke," said the judge during yesterday’s sentencing hearing.
Ramey pleaded guilty May 8 to first-degree theft and her 90-day sentence is at the top of the standard sentencing range for first-degree theft, authorities said. She was also ordered to pay $120,000 restitution to the $40 million credit union.
Ramey confessed to stealing the cash between July 1, 2010, and Dec. 2, 2011. She and her husband, Ervin (Ron) Ramey appear to have gambled away most of the money, racking up nearly $112,000 in losses at the Lucky Eagle Casino, according to casino officials.
Police say $59,000 of cash ended up in a US Bank in Ramey's personal bank account. Ron Ramey's name was on most of the deposit slips and police say the couple then made numerous ATM withdrawals at the casino where the couple were considered elite customers. Police have not recommended any charges be filed against Ron Ramey, who told detectives he believed the money came from gambling winnings.
Between July 2010 and this past December, court documents say that Roxane Ramey changed records to hide the missing money.
At the end of each day, Ramey was allowed to balance the cash in the vault alone. She was the only one with the key to the cash drawer. Police say she canceled vacations and never missed a day of work for a year and a half just so she could keep an eye on those accounts and keep her scheme hidden.
