Former West Shore Bank Trust Officer Sentenced In Embezzlement Scam

          GRAND RAPIDS – U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Michigan Mark Totten today announced that Kathleen Ann Matteson, 71, of Muskegon was sentenced to 61 months in prison and 2 years of supervised release following her conviction on bank fraud, embezzlement, and identity theft charges. During sentencing, U.S. District Judge Jane Beckering stated that Matteson’s “conduct is a betrayal of the trust of the individuals who put their money in her hands.”

           “Through her brazen scheme, Ms. Matteson stole over $780,000 from customer accounts,” said U.S. Attorney Mark Totten. “My office is committed to protecting businesses and holding accountable those who abuse positions of trust and profit at the expense of unsuspecting victims.”

          On August 30, 2023, Matteson was indicted for bank fraud, embezzlement, and aggravated identity theft. The charges specified that Matteson, a trust officer, had engaged in a fraudulent scheme beginning in 2006.  She would take funds by submitting bills to her employer from a shell company she owned that did nothing, write duplicate payroll checks to herself, and take funds out of customer trust accounts for her own use. The scheme continued after West Shore Bank acquired her trust company in 2017 and did not end until she retired at the end of 2019. Total losses exceeded $780,000.

          Matteson pleaded not guilty and proceeded to trial in April 2024. The evidence at trial showed that Matteson embezzled funds and concealed her actions by falsifying records. According to court records, Matteson spent most of the embezzled money on casino gambling activities. The jury convicted Matteson on all charges.

          “Ms. Matteson's deceitful actions, spanning over a decade and involving multiple fraudulent schemes, continued until her retirement, at which point she believed she had succeeded,” stated Cheyvoryea Gibson, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Michigan. “She deliberately profited from these frauds at the expense of clients and her employer. The FBI remains committed to working with our partners from the U.S. Attorney's Office to combat these serious white-collar crimes.”

          The Federal Bureau of Investigation investigated this case, and Assistant United States Attorneys Timothy VerHey and Doaa Al-Howaishy prosecuted it.

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