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Director Accused Of Embezzling $290K From Union League Club Foundation

CHICAGO (STMW) -- A 58-year-old woman was charged Tuesday with embezzling nearly $290,000 from a foundation affiliated with the Union League Club of Chicago, officials said.

Christina Madej, who lives in a condominium off the Magnificent Mile, is accused of bilking the Chicago Engineers' Foundation, which provides scholarships to Chicago high-school graduates who study engineering in college. A bond hearing is scheduled for Wednesday.

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Madej was executive director of the foundation. An audit last year uncovered the alleged theft, police said, in which she wrote checks to herself from the foundation account.

"My expectation is that we will continue to grant scholarships on the same basis," said Richard Beem, a patent attorney and board member of the foundation, one of three affiliated with the Union League Club.

"The [engineers'] foundation discovered the loss of funds, which we understand is the subject of the charges, and has cooperated with law enforcement officials in their investigation," the foundation said in a statement. "The loss was largely covered by insurance, and the foundation continues to pursue its mission."

Court records show Madej filed for bankruptcy in 2005, declaring she was nearly $85,000 in debt. She listed her job at the Union League Club as well as another job at an Oak Street art gallery.

© Sun-Times Media Wire Chicago Sun-Times 2010. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed

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