Former ECHO Housing Director Sentenced to 2 Years of Probation

Former ECHO Housing Director Stephanie TenBarge was sentenced in court on Tuesday.

New tonight -- the former director of a local non- profit-- who pleaded guilty to federal theft charges-- learning her fate today.

She was the head of an evansville affordable housing organization-- and now 44news reporter erran huber details the charges-- and the sentence just handed down hours ago..

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The us attorney's office says-- stephanie tenbarge embezzled over a hundred thousand dollars from echo housing.

Now--after pleading guilty to three federal charges ---and months of delays following that plea-- we know--she's going on probation.

Tenbarge stepped down from echo housing in march 20-18.... that same month - investigators said she had been stealing federal money from echo housing - and using it for her own expenses.... now--in march 2021-- she's been sentenced to two years probation--and ordered to pay a restitution of over 90-thousand dollars--to echo.

Echo housing's current executive director shared with 44news--that they feel it's "a final closure to an unfortunate chapter."

"homelessness is a critical issue in evansville today that affects many of our community members.

That work, and that mission requires 100 percent of our focus and our energy.

We're grateful to refocus on that mission and refocus on that work."

In a statement-- echo representatives added that over the three years since tenbarge's arrest--they've made significant overhauls to their accounting and other procedures.

Eh 44news the age