(TIMES LEADER) — WILKES-BARRE, Pennsylvania — A couple who served as secretary and board president of Holy Trinity Lutheran Church in Kingston must pay back more than $174,000 they were accused of stealing from the church after pleading guilty Wednesday to theft charges.
Keith White, 52, and his wife, Cherie White, 45, were charged with embezzling the funds in October after they admitted they spent them for their own personal use. The Kingston couple took money from the church collection plate and racked up thousands of dollars in purchases using a church-issued debit card at restaurants and retailers, police say.
Former board president Keith White pleaded guilty to two felony counts of conspiracy to commit theft and device fraud, while his wife, the one-time secretary, pleaded guilty to two felony counts of theft and access device fraud. The plea deal struck in the case calls for the couple to pay $174,482 in restitution.