Conn. bank worker sentenced in 3-decade theft

NEW HAVEN, Conn. (AP) - Prosecutors say a 76-year-old Connecticut woman who stole more than $722,000 from bank customers in 30 years has been sentenced to one day she has already served.

Betty Pacocha of Kent was also ordered Thursday to pay a $250,000 fine and perform 300 hours of community service after pleading guilty to one count of bank fraud. She has five years of supervised release under the sentence.

Pacocha has repaid the bank in full using her retirement pension.

Pacocha worked as a teller, branch manager, vice president, compliance officer, executive vice president and corporate secretary of New Mil Bank from 1961 to 2006.

Prosecutors say she removed funds from customer certificate-of-deposit accounts for personal use. They said she kept detailed records so she could replenish the money before the CDs matured, by stealing from other accounts.

Copyright 2009 The Associated Press.