JACKSON, Miss. — Former Jackson Area Federal Credit Union CEO Leigh Bridges pleaded guilty Monday to three federal charges stemming from the embezzlement of more than $69 million from the credit union.
Bridges pleaded guilty to theft of funds from a federal credit union, making false statements to a federal credit union and filing false tax returns. She faces a maximum of 70 years in prison when she is sentenced Feb. 25, WLBT reported. U.S. District Judge Daniel Jordan said probation is not an option because two of the counts each carry potential sentences of more than 25 years.
The guilty plea came one day after federal prosecutors charged the former president and CEO n with stealing about $90 million from the institution over more than a decade.
U.S. Magistrate Judge LaKeysha Greer Isaac set Bridges’ bond at $25,000 during a preliminary hearing. Jordan kept the bond in place, allowing her to remain free pending sentencing.
Federal prosecutor Deidre Colson said Bridges used her positions at Jackson Area Federal Credit Union to take more than $69 million, leaving the institution insolvent. It was placed into conservatorship by NCUA in May and as of its mid-year 5300 was reporting $60.8 million in assets, 15,704 members and a whopping $103 million loss and -145.63% net worth.
How Bridges was able to perpetrate the embezzlement for so long and to live such opulent lifestyle has been a subject of much discussion among CU Daily readers, who question how employees, the board, auditors and NCUA did not notice any red flags.
Scheme Began in 2011
The scheme began in 2011 and continued for more than a decade, Colson said, explaining that Bridges used an administrative code to access credit union accounts and post false deposits to four accounts: her own, her mother’s, her husband’s and an account she held jointly with her husband.
Colson said Bridges disguised the deposits as electronic transfers from various companies and entered false debits in the credit union’s ledgers to conceal them, according to WLBT. She also said Bridges had altered credit union statements since the late 1990s or early 2000s to hide millions of dollars in shortfalls.
Prosecutors would have shown at trial that Bridges altered corporate statements and later began taking money being transferred to the credit union, according to WLBT.
As the CU Daily reported earlier, Bridges served as CEO from 2022 until she was placed on administrative leave April 17, 2026, after an investigation into wire transfers. She previously worked as the credit union’s comptroller, senior account manager and chief financial officer.
Colson said Bridges spent the money on luxury items and millions of dollars in real estate. The purchases included a $1.2 million property on Sleepy Hollow Drive, a $271,000 townhome on Eastbrooke Drive and a $655,000 condominium in Alabama, as well as an extensive list of luxury goods that included an $88,275 Cartier watch, tens of thousands of dollars in purchases at Dior and Van Cleef & Arpels, private jet travel, a $3,700 lunch and a lavish New York jewelry-shopping trip.
Paid in Cash
“Bridges made all these purchases in cash and in full,” Colson said, according to WLBT. Bridges and her husband, Chad Bridges, have since moved out of the Sleepy Hollow property. Prosecutors said they would seek forfeiture and restitution under her plea agreement, according to WLBT.
The guilty plea follows a separate, ongoing civil lawsuit accusing Bridges, her husband and their friend Tina Funez of embezzling as much as $95 million. That case is also before Jordan, with a hearing scheduled for Oct. 16. Chad Bridges did not appear in court Monday, WLBT reported.
Bridges declined to comment as she left the courthouse. WLBT said it had contacted the credit union for comment.
The video news report can be found here.
Earlier Reports
Coverage in the CU Daily to date has included:
Forensic Auditor IDs $73M in Losses Due to Alleged JAFCU Embezzlement, New NCUA Filing States
Judge Schedules Settlement Conference in JAFCU Embezzlement Case as Agreement is Sought
Ex-CEO Who Allegedly Misappropriated $95M From CU Repeatedly Invokes Fifth Amendment Rights
Conserved JAFCU Posts $12M Loss in Q2; Net Worth at -145%
Judge Issues Freeze on Assets in Case Involving Alleged $95M Embezzlement at Jackson Area FCU
Luxury Home With ‘Purse Room’ Allegedly Bought With Funds from CU Was Featured in Magazine
Husband of CU CEO Charged in Alleged $91M Embezzlement is Placed on Leave by State
NCUA Files $95M Lawsuit Against Former CEO, Husband, Alleging Extensive Theft Via ACH Fraud and More
One Response
When will the story come out about how she got away with this for so many years? How did auditors miss it for so long?