Church Credit Cards and Gambling Debts: An Executive Pastor Gets 18 Months for Taking US$130,000

• A New Hampshire executive pastor was jailed for 18 months for wire fraud
• He took about US$130,000 from his church through withdrawals and card purchases
• The theft ran from January 2017 to March 2020
• He must repay the church and its insurer

A former executive pastor in New Hampshire has been sentenced to 18 months in prison for stealing about US$130,000 from his church to pay gambling debts, the Associated Press reported in a story carried by the Jamaica Observer.

Gregory Neal, 45, of Barrington, worked at Journey Baptist Church. Between January 2017 and March 2020 he made unauthorised withdrawals of church funds and used church credit cards for unauthorised purchases. He pleaded guilty in April to one count of wire fraud and was sentenced in federal court in Concord. He was ordered to repay both the church and its insurance company.

“A man who abused his position of trust — as a leader of his church — and stole from his congregation to support his gambling habit has been brought to justice,” said US Attorney Jane Young.

According to the report, when the theft was uncovered Neal confessed and tried to make amends. He repaid several thousand dollars and, after being confronted by law enforcement, saved more money to pay back. It said he attended Gamblers Anonymous meetings and started a new business building kitchen islands to support his family.

The case turns on two ordinary tools: access to the bank account and a church credit card. Losses like this went on for three years before they were found, and small congregations are the most exposed because one trusted person often handles everything. The repayment order also shows that the church’s insurer had covered part of the loss, which is why fidelity or crime cover is worth asking about. Any church running a building fund or collecting rent on property should require two signatures, reconcile the accounts monthly and have them independently reviewed every year, so that money given for the building is not lost before any work starts.

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