PADUCAH, Ky. – Debra C. Pyfrom, the former manager of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 816 Federal Credit Union, was sentenced on Wednesday in U.S. District Court by Senior Judge Thomas B. Russell to serve 78 months in prison and pay restitution in the amount of $600,520.16 for committing bank fraud, announced U.S. Attorney John E. Kuhn, Jr.
Pyfrom pled guilty in September of last year to executing a scheme for an unknown period of time, up until she was terminated by IBEW and arrested in July 2014. During that time, Pyfrom admitted to embezzling and stealing money from IBEW and its members for an approximate total loss exceeding $600,000. Pyfrom admitted to using the money for her personal benefit and for the benefit of her daughter, her boyfriend, friends, and family. She did this by manipulating credit union accounts, posting false loan payments, misappropriating cash, and taking out loans in members’ names without their knowledge.
Pyfrom also admitted to stealing money from IBEW credit union members’ accounts to cover her personal bills and those of her daughter, boyfriend and others, who had personal deposit accounts at the credit union. Pyfrom would cover these withdrawals with false, computer entry only deposits.
Further, Pyfrom admitted to issuing loans to herself and to her daughter and then posting false payments on those loans in order to conceal the fraud and make the loans appear current on IBEW’s books.
Lastly, Pyfrom admitted to taking out loans in the names of other IBEW account holders without their knowledge and using that loan money for her own benefit. Again, the balances on these loans were never repaid; rather, Pyfrom would manipulate the entries in the IBEW books in order to falsely show that the loan payments were current.
Due to its insolvency as a result of Pyfrom’s fraud, IBEW was forced into liquidation by the National Credit Union Administration.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Nute A. Bonner and was investigated by the McCracken County Sheriff’s Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.