Former Branch Manager Uses Court System to Thwart NCUA Investigation

For more than a year and a half, a former branch manager used the federal court system in an unsuccessful attempt to thwart an NCUA investigation that ultimately led to an embezzlement allegation against her.

Jihan Michelle Davis, who worked as a branch manager for the $15.4 million Lexington Avenue Federal Credit Union in Rochester, N.Y., filed a lawsuit against the NCUA in November 2017, claiming her Bank of America accounts should not be disclosed because the independent federal agency did not comply with provisions of the Right to Financial Privacy Act.

Davis was fired from the credit union in August 2016, after management determined a substantial amount of money was missing. A year later, the NCUA authorized Robert Robine, its trial attorney, to launch an investigation.

At the end of August 2017, Robine questioned Davis in a deposition during which she claimed no knowledge about a $19,200 deposit in her Bank of America account. She also testified that she handled no more than a couple of hundred dollars while working at the credit union branch under her supervision.

By November 2017, Davis filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Rochester to quash a NCUA subpoena to access her BOA account records. In addition to arguing the federal agency did not comply with provisions of the RFPA, she also claimed in a sworn statement that the deposits in question originated from savings from a business while she lived in North Carolina, and that other funds were provided by relatives and other friends who are not associated with the NCUA investigation.

A month later, a federal judge denied Davis’ motion to quash the subpoena giving the NCUA access to her BOA accounts. Those records showed 14 cash deposits each exceeding $1,000 for a total of nearly $52,000 from July 2015 to August 2016 while she was employed by the credit union, according to court records.

Robine continued the NCUA investigation and questioned Davis in a January 2018 deposition about discrepancies in her sworn statements about the BOA deposits. During that deposition, however, Davis declined to answer Robine’s questions on the basis that she needed to consult a lawyer.

Robine agreed to stop the deposition until Davis could hire a lawyer. However, she did not respond to repeated contacts by the NCUA to reschedule the deposition. It was not until eight months later in September 2018 when Davis responded to a motion to compel her to testify at a deposition. In that response Davis wrote, in part, she found it “hard and unreasonable to provide further testimony.”

Even though a federal judge ordered Davis to appear for a deposition in December 2018, she failed to show up.

A March 6, 2019 hearing was set for Davis to explain why she should not be held in contempt for failing to comply with a court order to appear for a deposition. On the day of that hearing, she sent a fax to the judge indicating she could not attend the hearing because of a medical issue. That hearing was rescheduled for April 6 when Davis said she received a “target letter” from federal prosecutors and could not discuss the case.

Finally, by May 20, Davis and the NCUA said in a letter to a federal judge that the matter had been resolved and asked that the case be closed.

Eleven days later, the NCUA banned Davis from participating in the affairs of a federally insured financial institution for falsifying credit union records and converting credit union funds for her own use.

Although Davis was arraigned on the charge of theft, embezzlement or misapplication by a bank officer or employee in U.S. District Court in Rochester on May 16, she did not enter a plea. Criminal proceedings are pending.