Former CU Board Member Pleads Not Guilty In $1-Million Elder Fraud Case
By CU Today Staff —
HARRISBURG, Pa.—A former board member of Susquehanna Valley FCU has pleaded not guilty to federal charges alleging he diverted more than $1 million in retirement savings from an elderly woman and used the money to purchase property, a pickup truck and other items.
William D. Brenner, 62, of Dover, Pa., entered the plea after being indicted on two counts of wire fraud and six counts involving unlawful monetary transactions. The not-guilty plea is the latest development in a case CUToday.info first reported Aug. 10, after the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced the indictment.
Federal prosecutors did not identify the credit union in announcing the case, referring to it only as a “local federal credit union where he was a board member.” CUToday.info subsequently identified the institution through its own review of NCUA Credit Union Profile documents, which showed a William Brenner serving on the board of the $86.8-million Susquehanna Valley FCU in Camp Hill, Pa., from 2016 through the middle of 2022. That period includes August 2021, when prosecutors allege the account used in the scheme was opened.
As CUToday.info previously reported, prosecutors allege Brenner persuaded the woman, who was born in 1936, and her daughter, who held power of attorney, to move more than $1 million in retirement savings into an account at the federal credit union after representing that he could provide a better investment opportunity. Prosecutors allege that instead of investing the money as promised, Brenner used the funds for himself and family members and had depleted almost all of the money by September 2021.
The indictment alleges Brenner used some of the money to acquire commercial property in Caneyville, Ky., in his own name and forged an agreement purporting to authorize the transaction by using authentic signatures obtained on another document. Prosecutors also allege the funds were used to buy a new Dodge Ram pickup, a skid steer and other tools and motorized equipment. The government is seeking forfeiture of property tied to the alleged scheme.
Originally reported by CU Today.