Nirschl did not respond to a CU Times interview request.

After the credit union was placed into conservatorship, it was merged into the $584 million Golden Plains Credit Union in Garden City, Kan. According to a local media report, Nirschl moved out of her home in Parsons, a small town of about 10,000 that was abuzz three years ago with rumors about the failed credit union.

Even though a lot of that small-town talk has died down, what hasn't been forgotten is whether anyone will be brought to justice for the missing $10 million that led to the closing of the credit union and the loss of its six jobs.

“I don't hear much talk about it,” Marty Mendicki said, who served on the Parsons Pittsburg board for 11 years and was its secretary. “But I get a few questions about it now and then. I'm frankly shocked we haven't seen this resolved a long time ago. We've had other embezzlement cases in the area and it seemed they were all handled within six months to a year while this has gone on for three years.”

Joseph Campbell, who worked at the FBI for more than 25 years, including as an assistant director of the criminal investigative division, said there are multiple factors that could delay charges or lead to them not being pursued.

Investigators could still be gathering evidence, the case could be connected to a wider comprehensive investigation, or the evidence is not available to justify an indictment now, Campbell said, who is director of the global investigations and compliance practices at Navigant Consulting in Washington.

Branden Perry, a white-collar criminal defense attorney in Kansas City, Mo., who specializes in federal inquires and investigations, particularly in enforcement matters involving novel financial issues, noted the complexity of the case might have slowed down the investigation.

“In the FBI affidavit, multiple transactions (both in and out) of multiple bank accounts occurred and a tracing of funds may be complicated as well,” Perry explained. “The forensic accounting investigators at the FBI have a difficult job, but they are very good at it.”

One of the factors federal investigators use to prioritize cases, he noted, is whether there is a “continuing harm” being done to the public, organizations or customers. Since the credit union was closed and member accounts were NCUA-insured, there was no continuing harm to the public. Because of this, federal investigators could be doing a thorough, systematic and time intensive investigation to ensure their case is sound, Perry said.

“The government, especially the federal government, brings criminal cases when there is little risk of losing at trial,” Perry said. “Any complications from any elements of the crimes could delay or hamper the timing or the bringing of any action at all.”

Insufficient resources may be another reason the Parsons Pittsburg case has not been prosecuted yet.

“Since the terrorist attacks in 2001, the FBI has shifted focus and agents from domestic issues, including white collar crime, to foreign-based terrorism prevention,” he said. “That is confirmed through a lengthy and steady decline in traditional cases being brought by the United States Attorney Offices.”

Whatever the reasons why the Parsons Pittsburg case has not been prosecuted, Mendicki recalled he and the board of directors were shocked when they were told of the findings of an examination conducted by state regulators and the NCUA.

“In this case, nothing should be unsolved,” he said. “Everything was cut and dry as it was presented to us.”

Other board members did not respond to CU Times' requests for comment.

On April 9, 2014, an FBI investigator filed a 20-page affidavit in U.S. District Court to convince a federal judge to issue a search warrant for Nirschl's house and her safe deposit box at a local bank.

The FBI investigation was launched sometime after the NCUA made an unannounced examination of the Parsons Pittsburg on Jan. 14, 2014. On that day, Nirschl was questioned by an NCUA examiner about her gambling activities. She told the examiner that during 2012, she and her husband had winnings and losses of $16 million. The FBI affidavit shows that during the month of September 2013, Nirschl made more than $500,000 in ATM transactions, electronic check transactions, ATM point of sale transactions and cash withdrawals at two casinos.

What's more, during the NCUA interview, she had a bag that was filled with 500 IRS forms that documented her gambling winnings, which totaled $4 million in December and November of 2013. It was not explained why Nirschl had the bag with her during the interview.

Although Nirschl told the NCUA examiner that she and her husband usually “break even” when they gambled, they kept $40,000 to $50,000 in cash at their home to draw on to cover their losing streaks. The source of this cash was from their gambling winnings and her and her husband's salaries.

Her husband, Jerry, was a retired postmaster of the U.S. Postal Service and worked as a handyman at a local school. His annual salary was not specified in court documents. However, according to the credit union's IRS 990 forms, Nirschl earned $61,801 in 2013. In 2014, however, she received only $3,846 in compensation, according to Parsons Pittsburg's IRS 990 form.

“The examiner asked Nirschl if she ever used credit union money to gamble with, and she replied 'no,'” the FBI investigator wrote in the affidavit. “The examiner then asked if there were any deposits that had been made into the credit union that were not recorded properly on the credit union books, and Nirschl again replied 'no.'”

During the interview, Nirschl told the examiner that she could produce copies of her tax returns showing that she and her husband broke even from their gambling.

But the examiner informed Nirschl she was being placed on temporary paid leave until after the examination was completed.

But even when the examination was under way and Nirschl's job was on the line, she continued to gamble. Currency transaction reports filed by casinos revealed that Nirschl inserted $192,269 into gaming devices from Jan. 20, 2014 to March 13, 2014. The CTRs also showed that Nirschl received $57,500 in cash payouts.

When examiners from the NCUA and the Kansas Department of Credit Unions completed their audit, they found $10 million in non-member deposits missing. These deposits were made by other credit unions and banks into the Parsons Pittsburg account at Kansas Corporate Credit Union, which Nirschl had access to.

According to the affidavit, examiners determined most of the $10 million was diverted from credit union accounts to accounts Nirschl controlled or an account associated with her husband.

Additionally, federal agents seized one bag of documents showing purchases of U.S. Savings Bonds, two boxes of tax records and financial statements, and two bags of IRS W-2G forms for gambling earnings.