Former Tampa church employee agrees to plea deal after stealing more than $775,000 from church
TAMPA - A former employee at Christ the King Catholic Church in Tampa accepted a plea deal with federal investigators this week after admitting she stole hundreds of thousands of dollars.
According to a plea agreement filed in federal court Wednesday, Heather Darrey orchestrated a sophisticated scheme while she worked as the church's data and records manager in the accounts payable department.
Investigators accuse Darrey of printing bank checks that were supposed to be used to pay invoices. After they were signed by a supervisor, she would destroy the checks and hand-write new ones for herself.
Court records indicate Darrey stole more than $775,000 while using the money to pay her own bills for her mortgage and credit cards. Investigators reported learning she also used the funds for expensive purchases, including concerts, shows and luxury items.
Christ the King's pastor told FOX 13 church leadership noticed irregularities and confronted Darrey, who admitted to the crimes.
Anthony Rickman, a Tampa attorney who isn't involved in this case but has handled similar ones, explained why it was important for the church to get to the bottom of the theft when it did.
"I've seen cases where people are stealing from institutions for years upon years. And they don't find out until, you know, down the road. The church did a great job in finding out internally what she did in a very short period of time, stopping it, letting her go, and ultimately turning over to law enforcement," said Rickman, who's also a parishioner at the church. "She doesn't just victimize the church. She's victimized the diocese. She's victimized the parishioners at that church. She's victimized the pastor. She's committed fraud on a lot of people who go there and give their money to help support the church."
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Investigators accuse Darrey of covering up the theft by falsifying accounting records.
In the plea deal, Darrey agreed to pay back the money she stole plus a $250,000 fine, totaling more than $1 million.
Rickman said agreeing to a plea deal can be beneficial to all those involved.
"She is showing the court that she's accepting responsibility, that she's remorseful for her actions and that she is attempting to make those restitution payments to hopefully make the church and the parishioners whole for the theft that occurred," he said.
In a statement to FOX 13, Rev. Len Plazewski said:
"We're all saddened by what happened and, as Catholics, we have to hate the sin but love the sinner. We pray for her and pray for her family. We don't harbor any ill will. We're a church of forgiveness and we want healing for her and there is life after all this."
FOX 13 stopped by Darrey's home to attempt to get a comment, but no one answered the door.
Darrey faces up to 20 years in prison when she's sentenced at a later date.
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