# NCUA Says Former JAFCU CEO Likely to Plead Guilty as $95M Case Drags On > Federal regulators are fighting a request to pause their civil suit against Leigh Bridges, saying her own attorney signaled a bill of information is coming and a guilty plea is likely. The case has already cost the agency $225,625 in security alone. *General News · By Jackson Wire Staff · August 24, 2026* The federal case against the former head of the Jackson Area Federal Credit Union is moving toward a guilty plea, and the agency suing her wants the civil side to keep running while it happens. In filings submitted Friday, the National Credit Union Administration Board asked a judge to deny Leigh Bridges' request to pause the $95 million civil suit, arguing that a bill of information is imminent and a plea would erase any Fifth Amendment risk. Bridges, the former JAFCU chief executive, filed a motion to stay the civil proceedings on the grounds that the case could affect a potential criminal case against her. Her attorney, John Colette, wrote in a letter included as an exhibit that 'the government is ready to offer us a bill of information in the next day or so, then set up her initial appearance, arraignment, and change of plea,' according to WLBT. A bill of information is the charging document prosecutors use when a defendant has agreed to plead guilty, typically without a grand jury indictment. NCUA attorney Allyson Mills argued the stay was unnecessary for that reason. 'In the event of a plea, there is no further risk of incrimination because the defendant must make an admission of guilt in accepting the plea deal, and presumably waive her Fifth Amendment privilege,' Mills wrote, according to WLBT. The civil case names Bridges, her husband Chad Bridges, and Tina Funez, a former credit union employee. Regulators allege the three misappropriated some $95 million from JAFCU, which was placed into conservatorship. As of Friday, no criminal charges had been filed against Bridges, and records showed none pending against Chad Bridges or Funez. The NCUA's response leans on money as much as law. Mills argued that a stay would cause 'significant prejudice' to the board, pointing to the cost of storing valuables seized from the Bridgeses. The personal property sits in an undisclosed secure location at a storage cost of at least $5,000 a month, she wrote, and security services have already run $225,625.50, with costs continuing at $3,600 per day. The property under guard includes a Steinway piano at the couple's former residence, which Mills said would likely fall out of compliance with its insurance contract if round-the-clock security ended. The agency is also seeking court permission to appoint a trustee over the property to cut those costs. The numbers are stark. JAFCU is in a deficit of at least $95 million, and at least $26.8 million of that ran through Chad and Leigh's account with the credit union between 2019 and 2026, Mills wrote. She argued that the value of the couple's real estate and vehicles combined would not satisfy even a $26.8 million judgment. Negotiations over an agreed order that would have given the Bridgeses a living allowance in exchange for relinquishing real property 'petered out,' the agency told the court. Chad Bridges refused to sign quitclaim deeds for the couple's four residential properties unless the NCUA released the lien on his retirement account to pay living expenses and attorneys' fees, according to the filing. The unpaid bills are piling up. One North Jackson home needs lawn care and pool maintenance, and the condominium association managing the couple's Alabama condo has sent multiple notices that invoices have gone unpaid, Mills wrote. The case echoes the rhythm of other federal financial prosecutions in Jackson, where civil recovery and criminal exposure run on parallel tracks. The difference here is the scale: a $95 million shortfall at a community credit union, with the regulator now spending thousands a day just to hold onto what it seized. The question now is timing. If the bill of information lands as Bridges' attorney predicted, the criminal case will move to arraignment and a change of plea, and the civil suit will likely proceed alongside it. For the NCUA, every week of delay is money it may never recover. --- [The Jackson Wire](https://www.thejacksonwire.com/) · [Read on the web](https://www.thejacksonwire.com/article/jafcu-leigh-bridges-plea-ncua-stay-filing)