Nun faces grand larceny charge tied to casino gambling
A nun with a casino gambling problem will be charged today with stealing more than $100,000 from two churches where she worked in Orleans County, The Buffalo News learned late Sunday.
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Investigators believe that donations made by parishioners were stolen by the nun, and she has been treated for an addiction to casino gambling, sources close to the case told The News.
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Although there have been several cases in recent years in which at least one priest and several area church employees were caught stealing large amounts of money to finance casino gambling addictions or extravagant spending, Cardone said he does not recall any such case involving any local nuns.
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While local authorities could not recall another recent case in which a nun was accused of theft, there have been a number of similar incidents involving church employees and at least one priest:
• In July 2009, the Rev. F. Norman Sullivan, 74, admitted in court that he had been stealing for years from Most Holy Redeemer Catholic Church in Cheektowaga. While making a salary of $20,000, Sullivan admitted, he stole nearly $214,000 over a period of eight years. He owned condos in Fort Myers, Fla., and the Virgin Islands, and repaid all the money after investigators caught him.
• In June 2008, Randall Kozlowski admitted in court that he stole nearly $400,000 while keeping the books for another Cheektowaga parish, Our Lady Help of Christians. Kozlowski said he routinely wrote checks to himself to cover gambling debts.
• In July 2007, former church office manager Maureen Durrell was sentenced to six months in prison after she was convicted of stealing $488,000 from St. Christopher Church in the Town of Tonawanda. The Erie County District Attorney’s Office said she spent stolen money on lavish vacations, home improvements and family expenses.
(Source: http://www.buffalonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20121104/CITYANDREGION/121109640/1010)
