A Catholic priest in Michigan has been charged with stealing thousands of dollars from a church in Troy, including money donated by the family of a dead parishioner.
Reverend Edward Belczak and another church administrator were indicted for theft of $700,000 from the St. Thomas More Church in Troy and the Archdiocese of Detroit between 2004 and 2012, The Detroit News reported. The pair allegedly concealed the theft by forging documents to the Archdiocese that showed the parish's expenses to be a lesser amount than it really was.
Belczak, 69, and his accomplice, 67-year-old Janice Verschuren, face several charges including conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, according to the indictment released Wednesday. Both face up to 20 years in prison if found guilty, the newspaper reported.
The money included donations given on Mother's and Father's Day, as well as a $350,000 donation to the church from the relatives of a parishioner who passed away.
Supporters of Belczak, described as a popular priest who has touched many lives, are not convinced of his guilt. He has been a pastor for over 30 years.
"He's presumed innocent and the conclusion is he is innocent," Jerome Sabbota, the priest's attorney, told The Detroit News. "We haven't seen any evidence. All we hear are allegations."
The priest reportedly used some of the stolen funds to pay for a $500,000 condominium in Wellington, Florida several years ago. Prosecutors placed the condo under a forfeiture suit two days before the indictment, the newspaper reported.
The Archdiocese did not offer specific details about the pending case against Belczak and Verschuren, but the two have not worked at the parish in over a year.
"The archdiocese will continue to cooperate with authorities as this matter moves through the courts," Archdiocese spokesman Joe Kohn told the newspaper in a statement. "As such, there is nothing more the archdiocese can or will say at this stage in the proceedings."
In the meantime, Belczak continues to serve other churches in the area, according to The Detroit News.