Former St. Louis-Area Union Employee Indicted for Embezzlement

ST. LOUIS – A former employee of a St. Louis, Missouri area union appeared in court Wednesday to face a federal charge accusing her of embezzling nearly $20,000 from her union. 

Tina Metrolis, 54, was indicted September 28 on one felony count of embezzlement from a labor union. She was arrested December 16 in the Southern District of Mississippi and appeared in U.S. District Court in St. Louis Wednesday to plead not guilty to the charge.

The indictment alleges that Metrolis, while officer manager of Stage and Picture Operators IATSE Local 6, took the money from roughly February through December of 2019. She wrote about $19,533 worth of checks to herself and covered up the theft by altering accounting records, the indictment says. Her actions caused another $6,412 in losses due to penalties and interest on tax liabilities that were not paid during her tenure, the indictment says.

In 2020, Local 6 represented approximately 167 members who work for various theater production companies serving the greater St. Louis region and has collective bargaining agreements with approximately 30 employers. 

The charge carries a penalty of up to five years in prison, a $10,000 fine, or both.

Charges set forth in an indictment are merely accusations and do not constitute proof of guilt.  Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Labor Office of Labor-Management Standards. Assistant U.S. Attorney Edward Dowd III is prosecuting the case.