Credit union CEO, state employee sued for allegedly embezzling over $90 million

• When reached for comment, the Mississippi Department of Insurance confirmed that Chad Bridges has been placed on administrative leave.

A former president of the Jackson Area Federal Credit Union, an employee of the Mississippi Department of Insurance, and a branch manager of JAFCU are being sued for allegedly embezzling more than $90 million.

Defendants listed in the suit include former JAFCU president and chief executive officer Leigh Bridges, her husband Chad Bridges who was an employee with the Mississippi Insurance Department, and former JAFCU branch manager Tina Funez.

Chad Bridges was reportedly the financial and market division director for the Mississippi Department of Insurance at the time of the alleged fraud. He joined the Mississippi Insurance Department in 2004. He is no longer listed as part of that division on the Mississippi Insurance Department’s website as of Tuesday morning. 

When reached for comment, the Mississippi Department of Insurance confirmed that Chad Bridges has been placed on administrative leave. 

“Due to issues not related to the Mississippi Insurance Department, Chad Bridges, has been placed on administrative leave pending further investigation,” a representative with the Mississippi Insurance Department stated in an emailed response seeking clarification on Bridges’ employment status.

Chad Bridges is alleged to have been in the receipt of funds from the credit union’s general ledger that his wife allegedly transferred to his account. 

“Leigh Bridges exercised dominion and control over Chad Bridges’ personal share account at JAFCU. Chad Bridges was a mere title holder,” the suit outlines, adding that his total shared accounts under JAFCU totaled more than $1.3 million as of May 4 of this year. Those accounts have since been frozen. 

Transfers began in 2015 and continued until this year, totaling $51 million worth of ACH transactions, wire transfers and other false entries. Another $15 million is being alleged for use to pay off Leigh Bridge’s credit card bills and an Apple Card, while another $3.3 million was involved in the issuance of alleged fraudulent checks to make purchases from a store that sells luxury jewelry and handbags.

Other allegedly fraudulent purchases listed in the suit include nearly a $1 million to a construction company, more than $250,000 to an interior design business, and nearly $130,000 to purchase a Steinway piano and to purchase two vehicles from a luxury car dealership in the Jackson area. Other improper transfers or payments shown in the suit went to an art and framing business, a pool business, and the purchase of furniture and a Tesla.

Leigh Bridges assumed the position of president of JAFCU in 2021, a position that gave her the ability to conduct account reconciliations for wire transfers, the lawsuit outlines.

Funez, an employee of the credit union since 2006 and friend of Leigh Bridges, was named branch manager sometime in 2023.

Leigh Bridges was placed on administrative leave in April 2026 as part of an ongoing investigation into claims she entered fraudulent entries into the automated clearing house and wire transfers to personal accounts owned by the defendants, among other entities that had no business affiliation with the credit union, among other claims listed in the suit.

“On April 17, 2026, in a meeting which included two JAFCU board members and two NCUA examiners, Leigh Bridges admitted to misappropriating JAFCU funds for her own personal benefit and to using false entries to conceal much misappropriation,” the suit states. 

Her actions are alleged to have caused JAFCU to experience a financial deficit of at least $95 million.

It is stated in the lawsuit that Leigh Bridges concealed the illegal transfers by “overstating the amount on JAFCU’s general ledger on deposit with, or in transfer from, a corporate credit union in which JAFCU does business.”

For his part, Chad Bridges is involved in the suit because his wife began using his account to funnel “high volumes of funds,” estimated to be about $26 million, through his account from May 2019 until about May 2026.

The lawsuit further states that the income from each of their legal employers in 2025 was not sufficient to support the purchases or transfers that were made. The suit notes that Leigh Bridges received more than $193,000 that year in legal income and Chad Bridges received more than $86,000 in the same year. 

“The salaries and legitimate income sources of Defendants was for insufficient to provide the financial means to pay for the purchases identified in the preceding paragraphs,” the suit explains.  

Funez is alleged to have received numerous gifts from Leigh and/or Chad Bridges in the suit, including a 2023 Tesla Model Y, jewelry, at least 30 handbags, personal trips via private planes and jets, renovations to and the purchase of property on the island of Utila, and monetary gifts exceeding $480,000. 

The amended complaint filed in the U.S. District Court is requesting a trial by jury.