More than $125,000 was stolen from Parkvale Bank customers in Wintersville, and according to the woman convicted, it was all due to a gambling problem.

Jan Manson, who pleaded guilty to the crime, worked at the bank as a manager. She told the court Friday that her gambling addiction led her to steal the money.

"It went on for a long period of time. She knew the particular customers. Our disappointment and frustration with her is she would steal from elderly customers who she thought would be least likely to discover what she was doing," said Jefferson County Prosecutor Jane Hanlin.

According to Hanlin, the law recently changed, so Manson could not legally go to prison. Instead, she will spend six months in the Eastern Ohio Correctional Center, followed by five years on probation. During that time, Manson is not permitted to gamble, or she could face jail time.

Hanlin said recently she's seen more crimes related to gambling than she ever has before.

"What happens is these people will start to go over to those gambling locations," Hanlin said. "For some people that almost immediately becomes a habit that they can't break or they are unwilling to break, and a lot of our crime has gambling at the root of it."

Parkvale Bank is now owned by First National, and customer Francis Dye said this incident is just one reason he keeps a close eye on his money. He said he understands that Manson may have had a gambling problem, but that her crime should still be punished.

"I'm not one to pass much judgment on that because I can see both sides of it, but I think something should happen," Dye said.