Two years after The Madera Tribune’s coverage of alleged wrongdoing at ETAA Charter School, Nicholas Retana, the school’s former executive director, is facing federal charges of embezzling money.
On July 17, 2025, a federal grand jury returned a sealed indictment charging Retana, 67, of Madera, with one count of embezzling money from a program that received federal funding. On Monday the indictment was unsealed and Retana was arraigned. The U.S. Department of Justice made the announcement Tuesday, July 22, 2025.
If Retana is convicted of embezzlement, he faces “a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine,” according to a news release.