COEUR d'ALENE - A 58-year-old Coeur d'Alene woman and a one-time assistant branch manager at a Hayden bank pleaded guilty in federal court to making false entries in the bank's books, and will have to pay $400,000 in restitution.

Mary A. Head was employed by Bank of America at its Hayden Lake branch in Hayden from 1993 to 2009. In 1997, Head became the assistant branch manager. In that capacity, Head was the sole employee responsible for control of the automatic teller machine, which included balancing the machine on a regular basis.

Beginning sometime in 1997, Head began taking money out of the automatic teller machine and using it for a variety of purposes, U.S. Attorney Wendy Olson, in Boise, announced in a press release Thursday.

Head admitted that she made false entries in the books, reports, and statements of Bank of America in order to disguise her criminal activity, and that she continued until it was discovered by the bank in December 2009.

Head pleaded guilty Wednesday in U.S. District Court to making false entries in the books and records of a federally insured financial institution.

The charge carries a maximum punishment of up to 30 years in prison, a fine of up to $1 million, and up to five years of supervised release.

Sentencing is set for Feb. 27 before U.S. District Court Judge Edward Lodge at the federal courthouse in Coeur d'Alene.

The case was investigated by the FBI.

Britney Sheehan, a spokeswoman for Bank of America, said, "We are pleased with the outcome in this case. Bank of America reported the situation to authorities after conducting an internal investigation, and cooperated fully throughout the entire legal proceedings."