Nun Embezzled Over $1 Million from College to Fund Slots Play

A 65-year-old nun at Iona College in New York reportedly stole over $1 million in order to fund her trips to Atlantic City and play slots over a ten-year-period. The nun, Sister Marie Thornton, worked as a financial officer at the school.

Thornton pled guilty to one count of embezzlement, which was enough to keep her from receiving any jail time for her crimes during her sentencing this week.

The case may appear to be a typical case of an addicted gambler stealing money in order to fund their habit, but several twists made the case slightly more complex than it appears. In 2009, officials at Iona figured out what was going on, and fired Thornton from her post at the vice president of finance.

However, the school chose not to contact law enforcement about the embezzlement, meaning that there were no criminal charges filed at the time. Instead, the federal government only began to investigate the issue after the school filed taxes last year. In the filings, the school reported the missing cash, but did not name Thornton in the report.

Once the charges came to light, Thornton was charged with embezzlement and other crimes related to steps she took to cover up her crimes. She was arrested in 2010, and pled guilty to the crime in March.

The charges could have landed Thornton up to three years of jail time. However, the judge in the case decided not to give Thornton any time behind bars, as Judge Kimba Wood said she had gone through extensive treatment for her addiction, and had also been subject to extensive punishment and oversight from her religious order. Thornton was also ordered to repay the money she had stolen, though Judge Wood believed it was unlikely Thornton could find the funds to do so.

While the school lost over $1 million in the embezzlement scheme, much of the money has already been recovered, as insurance policies covered $500,000 of the losses.