Richard Crabtree won't have to spend any time behind bars for siphoning away money while serving as chief financial officer at Santa Fe's general hospital, but he must pay back some of the funds he and others are accused of taking under the guise of upgrading the hospital's computer systems. He also must cooperate in a federal civil lawsuit. Under a plea bargain with the Attorney General's Office, Crabtree pleaded guilty Wednesday to three of 19 felony counts. The case involves an alleged scheme through which he and a former girlfriend, Loretta Mares, diverted at least $2.5 million from St. Vincent Hospital, now known as Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center, to Mares' brothers.
