PERRYSVILLE, Ind.–Laurie Allen, a former employee of Vibrant Credit Union, has been sentenced to five years in prison and ordered to pay more than $510,000 in restitution after pleading guilty to theft.
Allen, 55, took the cash from the vault at Vibrant CU in Moline, Ill.
According to Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul, Vermilion County Circuit Court Judge Derek J. Girton handed down the sentence after Allen pleaded guilty to one count of financial institution fraud, a Class 1 felony. Allen was immediately taken into custody to begin serving her five-year sentence, according to prosecutors.
‘Must be Held Accountable’
“The defendant stole more than $500,000 from a credit union where customers — likely her acquaintances and neighbors — deposited their hard-earned money believing it was safe,” Raoul said. “Individuals who steal from their employers and their communities for their own personal financial gain must be held accountable.”
According to Raoul, between January 2014 and December 2020, Allen stole more than $500,000 in cash from the vault of Vibrant Credit Union — previously known as First Illinois Credit Union — where she was employed as a branch manager. Raoul alleged in court that Allen stole the cash on multiple occasions and would take it home for her personal use.
NCUA Issues Prohibition Order
Separately, NCUA has issued one prohibition notice in October 2023, permanently prohibiting the person from participating in the affairs of any federally insured depository institution.
The agency issued the prohibition order to Ryan Nicole Horne, a former employee of NASA Federal Credit Union, Upper Marlboro, Md..
An Order of Prohibition prohibits a party from ever working for a federally insured depository institution.
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