Finance director indicted for $1.2 million mail fraud scheme

U.S. Attorney’s Office, Southern District of Texas | Press Release

A federal grand jury has returned an indictment against a 57-year-old resident of Mission for engaging in a sophisticated scheme to defraud her employer, announced U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani.

Elizabeth Batten has turned herself into authorities and is expected to make her initial appearance at 9 a.m. before U.S. Magistrate Judge J. Scott Hacker.

According to the indictment returned Sept. 4, Batten was the director of financing at McCreery Aviation in the Rio Grande Valley from 2019 to 2023. While serving in that role, she allegedly diverted company funds to pay for her personal expenses. She used signed blank company checks, intended for legitimate business purposes, to settle her personal credit card accounts, according to the charges. She allegedly concealed her actions by sending the fraudulent payments through the U.S. Postal Service.

In late 2023, a McCreery Aviation employee noticed irregularities in the handling of company checks. A subsequent investigation allegedly uncovered the full extent of the financial damage Batten’s actions caused.

The indictment charges Batten with 10 counts of mail fraud. If convicted, she faces up to 20 years in federal prison and a possible $250,000 fine.

The FBI conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric D. Flores is prosecuting the case.

An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence. A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.