Coraopolis Woman Convicted of Defrauding Former Bank

A Coraopolis woman pleaded guilty yesterday to charges that she defrauded the former Dwelling House Savings and Loan bank.

Elexa Manos-Becton, 43, of Sixth Avenue, pleaded guilty to bank fraud and money laundering in U.S. District Court in Pittsburgh.

The charges carry a maximum of 500 years in prison and a fine of more than $14 million, or both.

Prosecutors said Manos-Becton used a PayPal account associated with her Dwelling House Savings and Loan accounts to initiate automated clearing house transactions and significantly overdraw her account.

Dwelling House staff failed to catch and reverse the insufficient funds transactions, which amounted to $907,652.

In 2009, the U.S. Office of Thrift Supervision closed Dwelling House Savings and Loan after determining that the 119-year-old institution could not recoup substantial capital losses, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Dwelling House, a venerable institution based in the Hill District, had earned a reputation for serving low-income and minority clients in the Pittsburgh region.

PNC Financial Services Group acquired the bank's assets after its foreclosure, according to the Post-Gazette.