VISTA LAKES, Fla. – Fairwinds CU continued its frenzied expansion pace, opening its fifth new branch of the year here, and plans to open four more by the end of the year.

HONOLULU – A cunning bandit who dressed as everything from a nurse to a wounded soldier to rob 11 island institutions – including the same branch of Hickam FCU three times – will wear the orange jumpsuit of a federal prisoner for the next seven-and-a-half years.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Data security legislation backed by the California Credit Union League unanimously passed the California State Assembly Monday afternoon.

HAVERHILL, Mass. – NCUA has thrown out last September’s vote by members of Northeast Community CU to merge into nearby Haverhill Bank and ordered the vote be conducted again under its process to convert a credit union into a mutual savings bank.

LAWRENCE, Mass. – A failed indirect loan program is being blamed for a disastrous 2007 for Lawrence Firefighters FCU, forcing the 50-year-old credit union into the arms of the regulators.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Dozens of credit unions that reported large losses last year appear to have turned the corner, but others are reporting big losses for the first quarter of 2008.

PORTLAND, Ore. – TRM Corp., the nation’s second largest independent operator of ATMs, yesterday said it will not challenge a move by the NASDAQ to delist its shares from its global market.

DALLAS – A local man pleaded guilty yesterday to robbing four area institutions, including Resource One CU in Dallas on Dec. 6.

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. – One or more thieves broke into a Kern Schools FCU ATM last Thursday night by cutting through the wall of an adjacent utility room that connected to the machine.

LAKEWOOD, Colo. – Jeffco CU has signed with Secure Identity Systems to provide the company’s identity theft restoration and education service to its members free of charge.

RAPID CITY, S.D. – Black Hills FCU has introduced a short-term line-of-credit loan up to $500 as a payday loan alternative.

LATHRUP VILLAGE, Mich. – Michigan First CU said it has opened three new student-run branches, part of its plan to add 10 in-school branches this year.

OWENSBORO, Ky. – Daviess County Teachers FCU said it hired Alesha Saalwaechter to be its new president and CEO.

WASHINGTON – CUNA said it continued last month to cultivate the next generation of lawmakers, with campaign contributions to five candidates for open House seats.

WASHINGTON – The role of anti-regulatory, free-marketer on the House Financial Services Committee has apparently been passed to Texas Republican Jeb Hensarling, who has been called the “Dr. No” of the banking panel.

RANCHO CUCAMONGA, Calif. – CO-OP Financial Services, which operates the CO-OP ATM network, yesterday said it is paying member/owners a $24.5 million patronage dividend this year, up from from last year’s $22.9 million.

APPLETON, Wis. – Prospera CU is working with residents of April Aire Mobile Home Park to find them new homes after a buyer for the failed commercial property failed to emerge at Monday’s foreclosure sale, leaving the credit union with ownership.

DENVER – A federal bankruptcy court approved the Chapter 11 reorganization of failed subprime auto lender Centrix Financial yesterday, taking the next step toward recovering millions of dollars in unsecured claims by dozens of credit unions.

KEY WEST, Fla. – The former manager of tiny Monroe County Teachers FCU is headed to prison after confessing to embezzling $1.24 million from the Keys institution between 2002 and 2007.

PORTLAND, Ore. – TRM Corp., which has been struggling since its acquisition of eFunds’ ATM business, said Friday it has agreed to add 3,000 more ATMs to its fleet with the acquisition of Access to Money, a Whippany, N.Y., independent ATM operator.