Former Credit Union CEO Sentenced for Slew of Felony Charges
Judge orders Tina Louis Torres to pay $355,522 in restitution to Valley Agricultural Federal Credit Union.
Ventura County Court Judge David Hirch sentenced Tina Louis Torres, 55, of Santa Paula, Calif., on Wednesday to 365 days in jail for embezzling more than $350,000 from a California credit union when she was its CEO.
In February, she pleaded guilty to three felony counts of grand theft, two felony counts of forging or altering documents and three felony counts of grand theft by means of embezzlement. Torres also admitted to special allegations and aggravating factors on each count, which included an excessive loss of more than $100,000 and taking advantage of a position of trust or confidence to commit the crimes, Ventura County District Attorney Erik Nasarenko said.
Judge Hirch also ordered Torres to pay $355,522 in restitution to Valley Agricultural Federal Credit Union and to pay a fine of $300 to the state of California.
In addition, she was sentenced to six years and eight months in state prison, but Judge Hirch suspended that sentence as long as Torres does not violate any of the terms of her two-year probation. If she complies with all of the probation terms, Torres may apply for a dismissal of the charges, according to court filings.
Torres is expected to begin her 365-day sentence in Ventura County jail in May, court filings showed.
Since at least 2012, Torres had been CEO of Limoneria Federal Credit Union in Santa Paula. The credit union changed its name to Valley Agricultural Federal Credit Union several years ago and currently manages $5 million in assets and serves 628 members, according to the NCUA.
From 2016 to 2019, Torres embezzled the credit union’s funds and forged documents to conceal the theft from the board of directors. Torres also served as the board’s treasurer, according to the credit union’s profile reports filed with the NCUA.
An audit detected suspicious wire transfer schemes, which enabled Torres to siphon credit union funds. She allegedly used the money to pay her personal debts, police investigators said.
The board fired Torres in August 2019.