A former commander of a Veterans of Foreign Wars post in Oklahoma will spend four years on probation after he pleaded guilty to stealing more than $40,000 from the organization’s bank accounts to use for his personal expenses. (Joshua Jospeh Magbanu/U.S. Air Force)
A former commander of a Veterans of Foreign Wars post in Oklahoma will spend four years on probation after he pleaded guilty to stealing more than $40,000 from the organization’s bank accounts to use for his personal expenses.
Michael Bruce Colley, 65, of Marlow, Okla., was sentenced last week by Chief Judge Timothy DeGiusti in the Western District of Oklahoma, according to court records. He faced up to 20 years in federal prison.
Colley was charged in September with wire fraud for a theft scheme that he established while the commander of VFW Post 1192 in Duncan, according to court records. As commander from about July 2018 until June 2021, he presided over meetings, enforced the rules, appointed committee members and made certain that other leaders performed their duties. Though not traditionally the role of the commander, he also controlled the finances during a portion of his tenure.
The post had five bank accounts with First Bank & Trust Co., and Colley almost exclusively used and controlled these accounts, according to court records.
He requested the bank send him debit cards, which he used to make more than 30 unauthorized withdrawals of cash using ATMs located inside casinos between January 2019 and June 2021. He used the money for his own expenses, including his mortgage.
Following the theft, the Duncan post had to sell its building and merge with VFW Post 4888 in nearby Marlow. Duncan is located about 80 miles south of Oklahoma City and has a population of roughly 22,000. Jason Burns, the post commander in January, said the organization was fighting to stay alive.
The post remains active but did not immediately respond Wednesday to a request for comment.
Colley enlisted in the Air Force in 1978 as an aircraft fuel systems mechanic, according to his official service record. He left the service in 1991 as a staff sergeant.
