CANADA
Windsor Star
TREVOR WILHELM, WINDSOR STAR
A forensic accounting expert testified Friday that a former local priest stole as much as $234,000 from his own church.
The chartered accountant said Robert Couture opened and single-handedly controlled a bank account in the name of Ste. Anne’s Parish that wasn’t authorized by the London diocese. KPMG’s Karen Grogan said Couture deposited more than $168,000 into the account, most of which was then funnelled to his personal Visa and bank accounts.
“Mr. Couture confirmed there was not approval to open the account,” said Grogan, who interviewed Couture during a forensic audit ordered by the diocese.
Couture, the former pastor of Ste. Anne in Tecumseh, is charged with theft over $5,000. He is accused of stealing large sums of money from the church between 2002 and 2010.
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