NCUA Targets Ex-JAFCU CEO’s Retirement Funds, Challenges $250K Legal-Fee Request
By CU Today Staff —
JACKSON, Miss.—The NCUA is asking a federal judge to reject former Jackson Area Federal Credit Union CEO Leigh Bridges’ attempt to tap her frozen retirement accounts for living expenses and $250,000 in legal fees, arguing the retirement contributions themselves may be recoverable because they were made while she allegedly was misappropriating tens of millions of dollars from the credit union.
In a new filing in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi, the NCUA board, acting as conservator of JAFCU, said the credit union contributed an amount equal to 23.5% of Bridges’ salary to her retirement account in addition to contributions from her salary during the five years before the conservatorship. The agency argued those contributions may constitute fraudulent transfers and said compensation paid to Bridges while she allegedly breached her fiduciary duties could potentially be forfeited.
The filing also provides additional detail on the NCUA's forensic investigation. The agency said its auditor has now determined that $73,325,882.54 in JAFCU losses resulted directly from Bridges' alleged misappropriation. The NCUA previously identified more than $51 million in false entries between 2015 and 2026 in accounts belonging to Bridges and jointly to Bridges and her husband, Chad. The agency said the couple's after-tax payroll deposits into their joint JAFCU account between May 2019 and May 2026 totaled approximately $1.1 million—$705,637 from Leigh Bridges and $397,035 from Chad Bridges.
Bridges has argued that the money in her retirement accounts is not traceable to funds allegedly misappropriated from JAFCU and that the accounts are protected from attachment. The NCUA counters that federal law allows it, as conservator, to freeze assets to preserve them for a potential judgment regardless of whether they can be traced directly to the alleged misconduct. The agency further argues that its federal authority preempts Mississippi law protecting retirement accounts and potentially ERISA protections. The court has not ruled on those arguments.
The NCUA also challenged Bridges' claim that she needs the retirement money to cover living expenses and legal bills. The agency said Bridges already has an attorney representing her in both the civil litigation and an ongoing criminal investigation and has not explained why other resources—including borrowing from relatives or existing lines of credit—are unavailable. It also said Bridges has provided no itemized billing or other information showing how the requested $250,000 in attorney fees was calculated.
The regulator similarly questioned Bridges' claim that she needs retirement money for basic living expenses, saying she has not identified those expenses and has only stated that she has sought but not obtained another full-time job. The NCUA pointed to its earlier allegation that Bridges spent at least $17,714.95 from American Express gift cards obtained through reward points in less than 12 weeks. As CUToday.info previously reported, the NCUA alleges Bridges attempted to redeem as much as $200,000 in reward points after the asset freeze was imposed and is seeking tighter controls over the defendants' spending.
The NCUA said it has not yet formally valued all of the Bridges' known assets, although Bridges' counsel has estimated them at approximately $25 million. The agency argues that amount would be insufficient to cover the losses it attributes to Bridges and that allowing her to draw down her retirement accounts could reduce the amount ultimately recoverable by JAFCU or the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund.
The latest dispute comes as the broader case moves toward an Oct. 16 settlement conference. As CUToday.info reported, Bridges, Chad Bridges and former JAFCU branch manager Tina Funez have been ordered to attend the conference along with the NCUA. The agency's civil lawsuit alleges approximately $95 million was misappropriated from JAFCU. The NCUA placed the credit union into conservatorship May 6, and a federal judge subsequently froze assets belonging to the defendants while the regulator seeks to recover the alleged losses.
Originally reported by CU Today.