Stephanie Tenbarge sentenced on federal embezzlement charges.
Former ECHO Housing director Stephanie Tenbarge will be on probation for two years and must pay over ninety thousand dollars in restitution to ECHO and two insurance companies.
According to court documents filed in the case, Tenbarge admitted using ECHO Housing funds to pay for personal expenses such as property taxes and lawn care, but said that the amounts were much less than an audit determined. She also maintained that ECHO owed her more money than she embezzled.
Tenbarge was removed as executive director of ECHO in 2018 when the discrepancies were noticed by other staff members.
In a statement, ECHO Housing director Chris Metz wrote that he’s glad there has been a final resolution in the case, so that the housing organization can move forward to serve the community.
