A former church secretary in Arkansas is accused of embezzling more than $140,000 from the church’s account, records show.
The Sentinel-Record in Hot Springs reports that James Robert Martin, 68, of Hot Springs Village faces a charge of theft of property more than $2,500.
Martin, who was arrested Wednesday, was later released on $5,000 bond.
“It was a violation of trust that took everyone by surprise, but the church has done very well,” the Rev. Jimmy Holland of Leonard Street Baptist Church in Hot Springs told the newspaper.
In August 2016, the pastor had filed a complaint about several discrepancies found in the church’s finances over a period of several years.
Martin reportedly wrote several checks from the church’s bank account between Jan. 1, 2014, and Aug. 8, 2016, which totaled $64,315.34. No invoices or receipts for the checks had been written, Holland told authorities.
An accounting firm was later hired and found $140,155.49 in unauthorized disbursements, withdrawals and charges, the Sentinel-Record reported.
Read the full story from the Sentinel-Record here.
