Prosecutors say two ex-workers at a West Texas credit union have been sentenced to prison for stealing more than $18 million and causing the institution to fail.
Former El Paso Federal Credit Union assistant manager Hilda Simental Mendoza was sentenced Thursday to 10 years in prison. A federal judge on Sept. 21 sentenced ex-EPFCU manager Maria Guadalupe Hernandez to nearly 16 years.
Both women in May pleaded guilty to an 11-count indictment for bank fraud, wire fraud and conspiracies to commit both bank and wire fraud. The women must repay the stolen money to the federal government.
Investigators say the scam began in 2007 and involved proceeds from EPFCU shares certificates sold to other credit unions but never officially recorded. Auditors discovered the scheme, leading to the 2012 failure.
