DELRAY BEACH, Fla., Sept. 29 (UPI) -- Two former pastors at a Roman Catholic church in Delray Beach, Fla., are accused of skimming more than $8 million from the church over four decades.
The priests allegedly spent about $8.6 million on land, travel, gambling, collectibles and women, the Palm Beach (Fla.) Post said Friday. Funds received through gifts and offering plates allegedly were diverted into separate accounts the priests controlled, the newspaper said.
Police arrested and charged with grand theft the Rev. John Skehan, 79, a priest and pastor at St. Vincent Ferrer Catholic Church for more than 40 years, at Palm Beach International Airport as he was returning from Ireland, the newspaper said. He is suspected of having taken some $8 million.
The other priest, the Rev. Francis Guinan, 63, was vacationing in Australia, the paper said. Police said they expected to file a similar charge against Guinan, who is thought to have misappropriated about $400,000
The investigation into the pair's activities began about a year ago after the Palm Beach County State Attorney received an anonymous tip, the paper said.
"These guys lived the life they told everyone else not to live," Delray Beach Police spokesman Jeff Messer told the Post. "(A)nd they lived it on everyone else's dime.
