A Sewickley woman who previously worked for a nonprofit guardianship agency pleaded guilty Tuesday to bank fraud in federal court.
Judith A. Hetzell, 63, will be sentenced Oct. 13 by Senior U.S. District Judge Nora Barry Fischer.
She was charged via criminal information on April 7.
An information is used in lieu of an indictment in cases where a defendant has agreed to plead guilty.
According to the filing, Hetzell worked as the former business manager at the organization, which is not named in court filings.
In that capacity, between November 2023 and February 2025, federal prosecutors said she fraudulently drafted checks against five individuals’ accounts to which the agency had access as a provider of guardianship and other services.
According to the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, which investigated the case, Hetzell made the checks payable to cash or to her mother and then forged the endorsement of the company’s director.
The information listed seven transactions totaling nearly $81,000.
The first fraudulent check was issued for $25,000 on Nov. 27, 2023.
The largest, issued Feb. 27, 2025, was for $33,000, according to court documents.
In addition, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Pennsylvania said Hetzell then disguised the transactions in the company’s accounting system as legitimate expenses for the clients.
Amy B. Jones, the attorney who represents Hetzell, did not return a message seeking comment.