A Greenwich priest failed to account for more than $400,000 in church funds he kept in secret accounts and engaged in a pattern of deception when confronted, an investigation by church officials concluded Friday.The Roman Catholic Diocese of Bridgeport said it has provided its findings to federal authorities after investigating the Rev. Michael Moynihan. He resigned last year as pastor of St. Michael Church in wealthy Greenwich and was stripped of his priestly authority last month after he was found living with another man.
The FBI had contacted church officials about the secret accounts, the diocese said.
"We regret that, after more than a year of reviewing financial records and discussing these records with Father Moynihan and his counsel, as well as giving Father Moynihan every opportunity to substantiate his claims that all the expenditures were for legitimate parish or school purposes, we can only conclude that Father Moynihan has engaged in a pattern of self-dealing, deceit, and submitting falsified and misleading documents to the substantial detriment of our parish," an audit committee told parishioners in a letter.
The U.S. Attorney's office declined comment.
An FBI spokeswoman said the agency was aware the matter was referred to the agency but declined further comment.
A telephone message was left Friday for Moynihan at his former job as a volunteer chaplain at the State University of New York Maritime College in New York.
Church officials would not disclose the name of his attorney.
The report by two public accounting firms, covering the period from 2003 to July 2006, found more than $400,000 that either went to pay Moynihan's personal credit card bills or expenses that were not documented as legitimate.
That money was part of $2.1 million in expenditures from two off-the-books accounts, but the rest of the money went to documented legitimate expenses or expenses that appeared to be appropriate, the report found.
The report offers few details on how Moynihan might have spent church money, but does cite $58,000 used to buy a boat as well as restaurant and travel expenses and a livery service.
Moynihan said he received gifts from a trust, but a beneficiary of the trust challenged his use of trust money to buy the boat, the report found.
"We have concluded that Father Moynihan grossly mismanaged parish funds and diverted parishioner contributions into two off-the-books accounts," the report states.
"Further, his claims that funds paid to him from these accounts were to reimburse him for purported out-of-pocket expenses related to the parish and the school were not corroborated."
Moynihan tried to support one claim by submitting a document purportedly signed by a former judge who served on a scholarship committee.
But the judge denied that the signature was his or that he had ever seen the document or authorized anyone to sign it on his behalf, according to the report.
Moynihan also lied about the existence of the secret accounts and falsely claimed he reimbursed himself for a $1,000 scholarship to a child, according to auditors.
Moynihan was stripped of his priestly authority after the Bridgeport Diocese learned last month that he shared a Manhattan apartment with another man.
Moynihan failed to end that association despite promises to do so, and engaged in "obfuscation" when questioned about church money, Bishop William E. Lori wrote in a letter Thursday to parishioners.
"This dual breach of trust has given scandal: It has caused division in the parish and community, threatened the faith of believers and impeded the mission of the church," Lori wrote. "We stand in need of healing."
The report was issued three months after a Darien priest was sentenced to 37 months in prison for stealing about $1.3 million from his wealthy parish to support a luxurious lifestyle.
The Rev. Michael Jude Fay, who pleaded guilty to a federal fraud charge in September, set up secret bank accounts to pay for travel around the world and to buy a condominium, authorities say.
Bridgeport diocese officials say they have made "great strides" in implementing a new system of financial procedures and controls in all 87 parishes in Fairfield County. Those steps have become a model for other dioceses, Lori said in a telephone interview Friday.
"I think people can have a great deal of confidence that the donations to the parishes are used well and wisely for the mission of the parish," Lori said.
Amid reports of church embezzlement around the country, some colleges are hoping to prevent such abuses by offering programs devoted specifically to managing church finances and personnel.
"It's a major, major concern," said John Moynihan, communications director for the lay reform group Voice of the Faithful in Boston, who is not related to Michael Moynihan.
"It's a new and growing crisis of the Catholic Church. The bishops need to take control of their financial affairs. There's just too much money that's available that's unaccounted for. Unless we bring in modern business standards to it, this is going to continue to happen."
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Disclaimer
No responsibility or liability shall attach itself to either myself or to the blogspot ‘Clerical Whispers’ for any or all of the articles placed here.
The placing of an article hereupon does not necessarily imply that I agree or accept the contents of the article as being necessarily factual in theology, dogma or otherwise.
Sotto Voce