By Bill Grubb

GREENEVILLE — A former teller at the Rogersville branch of 
Appalachian Community Federal Credit Union has entered a plea 
agreement to a charge she embezzled $105,900.
    Trena Clayton Bledsoe was originally named in a four-count sealed 
indictment handed down by a federal grand jury August 12.  The 
original indictments consisted of two counts concerning the 
embezzlement allegations and two counts of providing false 
information during a bankruptcy proceeding.
    According to Assistant United States Attorney Helen Smith, under a 
plea agreement presented in U. S. District Court Thursday Bledsoe is 
entering a guilty plea to two counts, a single embezzlement charge 
and a single charge she provided false information on a bankruptcy 
petition.
    According to court records, Bledsoe began working at the Rogersville 
branch of the credit union in February 2003.  She was promoted to 
head teller, vault custodian, member services representative, 
customer services representative and loan processor.
    The initial indictments alleged that from April 27, 2006 until 
August 31, 2007 Bledsoe “willfully embezzled and purloined” 
approximately $78,900.
    The second count of the August 12 indictment provided some 
additional information charging Bledsoe placed an “electronic flag” 
on the accounts of three credit union members that kept the credit 
union from mailing paper copies of the monthly account statements to 
the three individuals.
    That indictment further alleged Bledsoe withdrew $17,000 from one 
account, $7,000 from a second account and $3,000 from the third 
account, for a combined total of $27,000.
    According to the plea agreement, on March 20, 2008 Bledsoe filed a 
bankruptcy petition, which included a financial disclosure statement.
    “The debtor falsely completed the Statement of Financial Affairs in 
response to questions regarding her income for the two years 
preceding the filing of the bankruptcy petition by completely 
omitting any of the $105,900 she purloined and embezzled from 
Appalachian Community Federal Credit Union,” the plea agreement states.
    The punishment for the embezzlement charge is a sentence of up to 30 
years imprisonment, a $1 million fine, up to five years supervised 
release and the payment of court ordered restitution.
    The punishment for providing false information in the bankruptcy 
case is a sentence of up to five years and a $250,000 fine.
    Bledsoe is currently free on her own recognizance, Smith said.
    A sentencing date has been set for February 2, 2009.