TEMPERANCE, MI (Toledo News Now) – A Toledo woman has been accused by the Michigan Attorney General's Office of pocketing millions of dollars from Monroe County Catholics.
The United Catholic Credit Union closed last August in Temperance.
The woman who ran the union, 61 year old Sharon Broadway, is charged with embezzling $2.1 million from 200 members of Roman Catholic churches in the county.
The Attorney General's Office says Broadway allegedly started the scam in 1985.
She was manager, secretary, board member and sole employee of the union.
The Attorney General's Office goes on to say Broadway was able to keep her crimes hidden for years using a complex money laundering scheme involving multiple aliases and forged checks.
She allegedly pocketed every cent.
Michael and Becky Casey belong to Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Catholic Church in Temperance but not the union.
Ms. Casey is stunned by the embezzlement allegation.
"People trusting to put their money in a place where they think it's going to be taken care of and have somebody take it. That's terrible," she said.
"It tells me somebody is not minding the store. Going to have some crooks all over the place. But there should be some checks and balances involved in this," her husband added.
Broadway returns to court on December 7th.
The attorney tells Toledo News Now a plea bargain is in the works.
