Montana Pastor Pleads Guilty to Stealing $288K From Church

MISSOULA, Mont. (AP) — A Montana pastor has been convicted of embezzling more than $288,000 from the United Pentecostal Church.
The Missoulian reports Kenneth Hogue of Butte pleaded guilty Thursday to a federal wire fraud charge.
Hogue was the former treasurer of the church's Rocky Mountain District.
He was responsible for depositing church offerings and writing checks for church expenses.
Court documents say he wrote himself unauthorized checks, withdrew church money from an ATM and transferred funds into his account from 2012 to 2016.
A $5,000 transfer alerted authorities to Hogue's thieving.
Hogue has agreed to pay back the money he siphoned. He's scheduled to be sentenced in December.
Hogue has worked as a pastor at the Grace and Truth Pentecostal church in Butte since 1982.
The church did not return the newspaper's call.
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Information from: Missoulian