Mason City woman imprisoned for embezzlement

A 54-year-old Mason City woman has been given more than a year in prison for embezzling nearly $70,000 from the bank where she worked as a teller.

Federal prosecutors said Thursday that Margaret "Peggy" Sheese was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Cedar Rapids to 14 months. She was ordered to serve five years of supervised release after she is released from custody and make nearly $72,000 in restitution to the bank and its fraud insurer. She'd pleaded guilty on Aug. 16 to one count of embezzlement.

In the plea agreement, Sheese admitted to making 29 secret withdrawals from accounts belonging to one customer of Northwood State Bank in Mason City between about October 2011 and January. Sheese also admitted stealing $2,000 in cash from the bank in January.