Bank Manager's Gambling Addiction Leads to Two Years in Prison

15:18
02 Jan

District Judge John E. Jones III sentenced a former bank manager, Tiffany Key Look, to 2 years in federal prison for stealing nearly $140,000 from elderly customers in order to feed her serious gambling addiction.

The 40-year-old Look was charged with pocketing cash from the Members 1st Federal Credit Union and Mid Pen Bank. The indictment listed more than 20 counts including mail fraud, identity theft, theft by deception, forgery, access device fraud, and stealing from a deceased's estate.

She confessed to the crimes after federal agents started to investigate and she showed remorse for her actions. In the courtroom, Tiffany admitted that she had no excuse for her behavior and knew that it was wrong. Her lawyertold the judge that she committed the fraudulent activities due to a serious gambling problem and asked that her sentence be reduced since she immediately cooperated with authorities and has undergone treatment for her gambling addiction.

Look apparently stole from elderly customers that trusted her and thought she was their friend. Tiffany took out a personal loan of $25,000 in one victim’s name without his knowledge. She withdrew $43,000 from the account of another and simply walked out the bank. Prosecutors also detailed how she wrote herself a $62,000 check from the account of a client who had died as the elderly parents of the deceased sat in her office.

None of the victims were present in the courtroom but Charles McBreen, the Member’s 1st vice president, was there and he spoke on behalf of the customers. McBreen claimed that Look was a trusted member of the team and knew most of the victims and even visited their homes.

Look's attorney explained that his client experienced a troubled childhood which led to her negative behavior, but is doing everything possible to change her life. That includes signing herself out of all Pennsylvania casinos for life through the state's Gaming Commission. U.S. Attorney Joseph J. Terz called Look a predator and said she stole from those who were vulnerable and harmed the reputation of her colleagues in so doing.

She not only stole, she lied. She set up a fake email account for me. I don’t even have a computer. She came to my home to try to convince me that it was all a mistake. She knew exactly what she was doing. I cannot decipher the mental, physical, and emotional anguish she caused. I no longer trust anyone." One of Tiffany's victims;
Look has been banned by the FDIC from working in the financial industry. She will have the support of friends and family when she gets out of prison and the judge advised her to make something good out of her light sentence once it is over.

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