Ex Aide Admits Stealing Nearly $23K From Lawmaker

A onetime senior aide to Rep. Marcy Kaptur has admitted she quietly drained her former boss's bank account for more than a year. Prosecutors say 40-year-old Courtney Hruska pleaded guilty in federal court in Alexandria, Virginia, on Tuesday to a felony wire fraud charge after transferring nearly $23,000 from the Ohio Democrat's personal account to pay her own credit card bills, NBC News reports. The lawmaker is not named in court documents, but records show Hruska worked in Kaptur's Washington office from 2015 to 2022, eventually serving as administrative director.

According to a signed statement of facts, Kaptur had entrusted Hruska with her personal banking and credit card information for official duties. More than a year after leaving the office—and landing a job at the US Department of Agriculture with help from Kaptur—Hruska began making unauthorized transfers from Kaptur's bank account to pay her bills. There were 10 such transfers between August 2023 and July 2024, prosecutors said.

When a check later bounced, the congresswoman discovered the missing funds. Prosecutors said Hruska initially blamed "hackers from the dark web." She later admitted that she didn't think she be caught because Kaptur, 79, is not "tech savvy" and "did not use electronic banking in any form." She faces up to 20 years in prison at sentencing in June but is expected to receive less.