Los Angeles Nun Sentenced for Stealing Catholic School Funds to Support Gambling Habit

A Los Angeles nun will spend the next year behind bars after stealing nearly $1 million from the school where she worked to support her gambling addiction.

Mary Margaret Kreuper was the principal at St. James Catholic School for 28 years. However, from 2008 to 2018, prosecutors say she stole approximately $835,000. During her tenure at the school, the now 80-year-old oversaw tuition payments and charitable donations. She had access to bank accounts for the school, which allowed her to embezzle money freely.

Last July, she pleaded guilty to one count each of wire fraud and money laundering.

As a part of Kreuper’s plea deal, she confessed to using the stolen funds to pay large gambling expenses at local casinos and credit card bills. She took several trips to cities popular for gambling, including Las Vegas, Lake Tahoe, and Temecula.

Kreuper had taken the vow of poverty, usually taken by nuns and priests. The vow denounces personal, worldly possessions and pledges to engage in communal sharing of resources. However, the nun did the exact opposite in a scheme she is now deeply remorseful for.

“My actions were in violation of my vows, my commandments, the law, and, above all, the sacred trust that so many had placed in me,” Kreuper said during Monday’s sentencing.