Former President of Credit Union Pleads Guilty to Bank Fraud

LITTLE ROCK—Christopher R. Thyer, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas; Brian Marr, Special Agent in Charge of the Little Rock Field Office of the United States Secret Service; and Valerie Parlave, Special Agent in Charge of the Little Rock Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, announced today the waiver of indictment and plea of guilty to a felony information by Joyce Judy, age 58, of North Little Rock, Arkansas. The information, which was filed in open court today, charges Judy with one count of bank fraud in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1344.

Thyer stated, “I would like to commend the financial institution for bringing this fraud to the attention of the United States, and I encourage any person or entity that learns of fraud to contact law enforcement.” He added, “When those in positions of authority and trust criminally abuse that authority for their own gain, federal law enforcement in the Eastern District of Arkansas stands ready to investigate and prosecute such actions.”

“The people of the State of Arkansas should appreciate the professionalism and dedication of the judicial efforts of the United States Attorney’s Office as well as the investigative efforts of this agency. The efforts of both agencies have brought about the successful prosecution in this important white collar crime conviction,” stated Marr.

“In today’s economy, it is as important as ever that we continue to work with our partners to protect the financial services industry by investigating those who create schemes that ultimately harm investor confidence and the public at large,” stated FBI Special Agent in Charge Valerie Parlave.

From February 2006 until April 2011, Joyce Judy was the President of the Arkansas Employees Federal Credit Union (AEFCU) in Little Rock, Arkansas. In October 2009, Judy agreed to an investment opportunity of which her portion was to be $1,000,000.

At the plea hearing held before Chief United States District Judge J. Leon Holmes, Judy admitted that to make up half of the $1,000,000, she contacted a customer of the bank and stated that she could invest $500,000 of his money in high yield certificates of deposit. He agreed to the CD and Judy provided him with a document purporting to be a CD. That CD was later reviewed by the credit union and was determined to be fraudulent. On October 29, 2009, Judy authorized an AEFCU check in the amount of $500,000 be written from the customer’s account and she endorsed that check. That money, along with $500,000 in legitimate funds, was then deposited into an account at another financial institution that had been set up for the investment. That account was a joint account with another individual purportedly involved in the investment opportunity. Without Judy’s permission, those funds were later wired out of the country.

From October 29, 2009 until the time the she was terminated, the defendant continued to communicate with the depositor regarding his “CD.” The depositor was led to believe that the CD was issued by a bank, was a tax free CD, and that the CD was callable at any time. In November 2010, the defendant sent the depositor a check for approximately $26,000 in an effort to lull the depositor regarding the validity of his CD. That $26,000 was from the defendant’s own funds.

When AEFCU learned of the fraudulent conduct, the credit union contacted law enforcement.

The statutory penalty for bank fraud is not more than 30 years’ imprisonment and a fine of up to $1,000,000. Judy remains free on her own recognizance pending sentencing, which will be set by the court.

The investigation was conducted by the United States Secret Service and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Karen Whatley.