Former Treasurer Charged in $5,800 Embezzlement from Cedar Lake Fraternal Organization
A months-long investigation has led to criminal charges against a former treasurer of the Cedar Lake Fraternal Order of Eagles (FOE), who is accused of embezzling over $5,800 through forged checks and fabricated donations.
According to court records, Margaret Szarka, the FOE’s former treasurer, is facing multiple charges including Forgery (Level 6 felony), Theft (Level 6 felony), and Theft (Class A misdemeanor). The charges stem from 18 checks issued between September 2022 and July 2024, most of which were made payable to Szarka herself and bore what investigators say were forged signatures.
Detectives of the Cedar Lake Police Department opened the investigation in November 2024 after newly appointed FOE treasurer uncovered discrepancies in the organization’s financial records. The new treasurer found checks ranging from $50 to $1,500 written to Szarka with memo lines referencing charitable causes such as “Autism” and “Lefty’s Nephew Autism.” Solich, supported by FOE secretary Renee Miller, stated that it was never the organization’s practice to write checks directly to individuals for donations, only to verified charities.
Miller’s signature appeared on many of the checks, but at least 12 were confirmed to have been forged. In several instances, her name was misspelled as “Renne” or signed with an apostrophe she never uses. Szarka later admitted to forging Miller’s signature, claiming she had verbal permission and was acting in the organization’s best interest.
Szarka insisted she would cash the checks and then donate the funds in cash on behalf of the FOE, later attaching donation receipts to flyers as proof. However, Detectives found no legitimate evidence supporting those claims. Bank records showed the checks were deposited using Szarka’s personal mobile banking app, despite her initial claim she cashed them at a bank, and there were no ATM withdrawals or transactions consistent with her explanation.
When confronted with this, Szarka changed her story multiple times, ultimately suggesting that someone may have impersonated a donation recipient to take the funds. She also failed to provide sufficient receipts or credible contacts to verify the alleged donations.
One example involved two checks totaling $2,000 supposedly written to help a young girl named Gracie with medical bills. Renee Miller, the secretary, became suspicious after speaking with Gracie’s mother, who denied ever requesting or receiving additional funds beyond the original benefit donation. Szarka later claimed, Miller, told her to provide the funds to Brandi in cash, an assertion both Miller and Lepkowski denied.
Another alleged donation involved a $500 check tied to a June 2023 “Ride for Autism Speaks” event. A receipt listed Amber Yniguez as the contact, but Yniguez told investigators she hadn’t hosted an event that year and never received such a donation. Moreover, the flyer provided by Szarka was found to be doctored, featuring outdated logos and altered dates from a 2022 “save-the-date” card.
Out of the 18 checks flagged, 12 were determined to have fraudulent signatures, totaling $4,725. Nine of those checks were confirmed to have been deposited into Szarka’s personal account, often when the balance was negative, with no corresponding withdrawals supporting donation claims.
Szarka stopped cooperating with investigators after being unable to reconcile the discrepancies. Szarka was charged with:
12 counts Forgery – Level 6 Felony
1 count of Theft between $750 & 50k – Level 6 Felony
11 counts of Theft – Class A Misdemeanor
