80-year-old nun accused of stealing $835,000 from Catholic school gets prison, feds say

An 80-year-old nun accused of stealing $835,000 from a California school where she served as principal will spend a year and a day in prison, a federal judge ruled.

The nun used her position to divert tuition money from St. James Catholic School in Torrance to pay gambling and other personal expenses, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California said in a Feb. 7 news release.

The thefts took place over 10 years ending in 2018. The former principal pleaded guilty in July 2021 to one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering, prosecutors said.

She also used her position to cover up the thefts by falsifying monthly and annual reports to school administrators. Prosecutors said she also ordered employees to alter and destroy financial records during an audit.

The nun used the money “to pay for expenses that the order would not have approved, much less paid for, including large gambling expenses incurred at casinos and certain credit card charges,” court documents said.

In letters to the court, parents and students commented on the school’s lack of resources, including money to pay for field trips, prosecutors said.

United States District Judge Otis D. Wright II also ordered the nun to pay $825,000 in restitution.

This story was originally published February 7, 2022 at 4:03 PM with the headline "80-year-old nun accused of stealing $835,000 from Catholic school gets prison, feds say."