Citrus Heights woman sentenced to prison for embezzling almost $500,000 as union treasurer

A Citrus Heights woman was sentenced Monday to two years in prison after embezzling almost half a million dollars from an East Bay government employees’ union.

Susan Elizabeth Kyle, 61, pleaded guilty in October to stealing at least $490,338 from the American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees Local 2428, a union that represents East Bay Regional Park District employees, while she acted as its treasurer, according to a news release issued by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California.

Between 2008 and 2014, Kyle used her position as signatory of the union’s bank account to make weekly payments to herself and prepared reports that did not include the expenditures, according to the release.

Kyle was ordered to pay $490,338 in restitution to the union and serve 36 months supervised release after her prison sentence, according to the release.

Sentencing judge Haywood S. Gilliam, Jr. said during Kyle’s hearing that her embezzlement had a “devastating effect ... on the union” and that she caused a “massive amount of harm,” according to the release.

Gilliam ordered Kyle to surrender herself on or before March 18 to begin her prison sentence, according to the release.