Collared: Catholic Priests Arrested for Stealing As Much As $2 Million From Church Donations

Two Roman Catholic priests — Fr. John Skehan, 81, and Fr. Francis Guinan, 66, have been accused of an astonishing criminal enterprise — stealing between $800,000 and $2 million from Church funds at St. Vincent Ferrer Church, in West Palm Beach. Shekan has withdrawn his not guilty plea and admitted the theft (tough insists that it was no more than $100,000) while Guinan continues to maintain his innocence. They allegedly stole the money to use on holidays and gambling.

What is interesting about the case is that most of the crimes are beyond the reach of prosecutors under the statute of limitations. The success of the criminal conspiracy was that it occurred over 20 years and presumably involved small amounts of money. The money was allegedly hidden in the church ceiling and offshore account. I guess the parishioners now know why Skehan beamed while staring up to the ceiling while speaking of our reward from up high.

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