A social media-savvy Louisiana pastor and writer was convicted of stealing over $340,000 from his congregations to fund his playing and private bills.
Dale Sanders, 56, was discovered responsible of a 25-count indictment charging him with wire fraud, entry system fraud, and obstruction of a federal investigation after a five-day jury trial final week, in line with the US Legal professional’s Workplace for the Jap District of Louisiana.
Sanders, of Kenner, withdrew funds held in a single church’s financial institution accounts and transferred them to his personal pocket to subsidize his lavish private expenditures — together with playing, eating, and residing bills, prosecutors mentioned.
Sanders labored as a pastor on the Fifth African Baptist Church in New Orleans and Second New Information Missionary Baptist Church in Metairie, in line with his social media.
He additionally used a church debit card for unauthorized private transactions and acquired money, items, and providers totaling over $340,000, officers mentioned.
The fraud befell between April 2020 and April 2024, in line with an indictment.
The cash-obsessed pastor additionally supplied a falsified file in response to a grand jury subpoena, prosecutors detailed.
After Sanders was indicted in April, he posted a video to his social media accounts asking his congregants to “pray” for his “enemy.”
He thanked churchgoers for “calling, texting, seeing me in particular person, and telling me that you just’re praying for me.”
“And consider this,” Sanders mentioned. “I really feel your prayers. God is already working and transferring by his Spirit.”
“That is what you are able to do for me … I do know you’re praying for me. However I would like you to wish a Matthew 5:44 prayer. I would like you to wish for my enemy.”
“The Bible says, ‘Pray for them that despitefully use you and say all method of evil in opposition to you falsely for my namesake,” he continued. “When you pray for my enemy, God won’t solely bless me, however he’ll cope with them.”
The pastor often posted movies on social media delivering sermons and singing throughout his church providers.
He additionally authored the e-book, “Strut your Stutter,” urging folks to “be peacock pleased with whoever you’re and no matter you’re working with.”
Sanders faces as much as 20 years in jail, a $250,000 positive, as much as three years of supervised launch after serving time behind bars, and cost of a $100 necessary particular evaluation payment per depend.
He’s slated to be sentenced on Oct. 13.
