GALVESTON, Texas–The former president/CEO of a now defunct credit union has pleaded guilty to a fraud scheme.
Susan Margaret Garza, 60, the former head of Electrical Workers 527 Federal Credit Union, pleaded guilty on a count of bank fraud in the U.S. District Court Southern District of Texas, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Prosecutors said Garza was employed by the credit union from February 1996 to April 2013, during which she executed a scheme to defraud the credit union by withdrawing unauthorized amounts from members’ accounts and making loans in their names.
At the time it was shut down, Electrical Workers 527 FCU had less than $630,000 in assets and was reporting net worth of -36%.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office said Garza admitted to issuing a check to her landlord’s daughter in September 2001 without a credit union's member’s consent, Dodge said.
Sentencing is set for Oct. 25. Garza will face up to 30 years in prison and a $1-million fine for the fraud scheme. Garza remains on bond pending the hearing.