Prison cell. Prison sentence for former credit union teller. (Source: Shutterstock)

A federal judge sentenced a former teller of the $120 million West Virginia Federal Credit Union in South Charleston to one year in prison.

U.S. District Court Judge Robert C. Chambers also ordered Frances McComas, 57, to pay $165,500 in restitution and five years of supervised release following her prison term.

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McComas began stealing a few thousand dollars from the branch vault in 2015.

But she "became even greedier as she started taking larger amounts every month," according to Mike Stuart, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of West Virginia.

To conceal her theft over four years, McComas falsified financial records. But during a cash count of the vault's funds in April 2019, her crime was detected. When confronted, she admitted to the theft and was fired.

Although McComas said in court documents that she stole the money to pay her credit cards, her son's college tuition and her daughter's medical bills, she conceded that her personal financial problems did not excuse her embezzlement.

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Peter Strozniak

Credit Union Times reporter covering credit union operations, fraud, M&As, leagues, business continuity, and breaking news.