72-Year-Old Sentenced After Stealing $574K From Church, Used Funds For Vacations & Gambling

A 72-year-old woman in Indiana has been sentenced to two years in federal prison for embezzling nearly $574,000 from her church!

The Ruse Went On For At Least 13 Years

According to Fox News, Marie Carson “illegally transferred at least $573,836.59” over the course of 13 years. Throughout this period of time, Carson served as the business manager for Saint Matthew Catholic Church and School in Indianapolis, and she was the only one responsible for handling monetary donations.

As a result, Carson’s scheme was only uncovered in late 2021 after she took a leave of absence and her fill-in spotted some suspicious transfers to an unaffiliated bank account.

It was also pointed out that Carson’s antics flew under the radar for so long because she would make fake entries into the church’s payment-tracking database.

Now, however, the 72-year-old is headed to federal prison. Upon Marie Carson’s release, she’ll also be required to complete two years of supervised probation.

The Funds Were Used To Finance ‘Lavish Vacations’

Prosecutors note that a good chunk of nearly $574K that Carson stole was used for casino gambling, as well as month-long vacations to Florida every year. In other words, she was really livin’ it up with the church’s money!

Zachary Myers, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana, also savagely noted that “her greed and desire” took precedent over “following the dictates of our criminal laws and the teachings of her church.” Oop!

“For more than thirteen years, this defendant abused her position of trust to embezzle money from parishioners intended for a church and school. Her greed and desire for lavish vacations outweighed her interest in following the dictates of our criminal laws and the teachings of her church, ‘thou shalt not steal.'”

Myers went on to note that this situation serves as a “clear message” to to dissuade people from committing similar crimes. Specifically, he added, “We will find you, you will be prosecuted, and you will be held accountable.”

Similarly, FBI Indianapolis Special Agent in Charge (SAIC) Herbert Stapleton slammed the scheme as being “fueled by pure greed.”

What do you think about the overall situation?