Catholic Nun Accused Of Stealing $850,000 To Gamble In Atlantic City
December 13, 2010 1:09 pmA Catholic nun by the name of Sister Marie Thornton, 62, has been accused of embezzling $850,000 from the New York college where she worked in order to fund her gambling habit.
Sister Marie Thornton worked at Iona college where she was in charge of the school’s finances between 1999 to 2009. During that time, the nun from the order of the Sisters of St. Joseph is accused of embezzling the huge amount of money by submitting false invoices and having the college pay her credit card bills.
Sources claim the nun blew most of the money on her frequent trips to Atlantic City casinos and that although most of the money has now been repaid, it was the insurance company, not the nun, the college has to thank.
Apparently, sister Marie was fired from the 4,200 student college last year with the public line given as medical reasons. It is also believed that Iona didn’t report the issue to law enforcement officers, who only became involved after the college filed income tax losses.
On Friday, Iona college issued a statement which said: “When it was discovered that the funds had been misappropriated, we took immediate action to terminate the employee. Today, we have a new CFO and staff in place; we have recovered the majority of the missing funds; and, from the College’s perspective, the matter is considered closed.”
In the meantime, sister Marie Thornton has pleaded not guilty to the theft charges and been released without bail pending a trial. If found guilty she could face up to 10 years in jail although her defence lawyer Sam Talkin commented:
“We think the case will be resolved in a manner fair to all the parties involved.”