KANSAS CITY, Kan.—A former credit union manager who once led Muddy River Credit Union has been sentenced to more than five years in federal prison for a long-running embezzlement scheme, according to KAIR.
As CUToday.info first reported in 2023, Rita Hartman, 68, was indicted after prosecutors alleged she stole hundreds of thousands of dollars over more than a decade while serving as manager of Muddy River CU (formerly Bradken FCU). Hartman led the credit union from the early 1990s through January 2021, during which the cooperative served employees of the Bradken foundry in Atchison, Kan.
Prosecutors previously said Hartman credited fraudulent deposits and loan payments to her and relatives’ accounts, stole cash deposits, and altered the credit union’s books and regulator filings to conceal the theft.
KAIR now reports Hartman has been sentenced to 5 years and 3 months in federal prison and ordered to pay $778,361.78 in restitution. She pleaded guilty earlier this year to one count of making false entries in credit union records, with other counts dismissed.
Court filings cited in the report say Hartman kept the CU’s general ledger manually to help hide the scheme, which investigators believe began as early as 2007 and continued until a regulator-mandated audit uncovered discrepancies in 2021.
The court recommended Hartman be housed in a medical facility due to health issues. Following her release, she will serve two years of supervised probation.