Preacher accused of stealing $800K from Houston Texas First Baptist Church

I would guarantee he was gambling, doing drugs and Whoring!

Houston Chronicle – A grand jury has indicted a former minister with embezzling more than $800,000 from Houston’s First Baptist Church over a six-year period, according to the Harris County District Attorney’s Office.

Jerrell G. Altic, 40, surrendered to authorities on a felony charge of aggregate theft this morning.

His attorney, James Alston, said Altic has admitted to the crime but declined to comment how any money was embezzled or whether it was spent.

“He’s admitted fully to the offense,” Alston said. “He’s working with the church, he’s trying to make amends for everything that he possibly can.”

Church officials said in a statement Tuesday that Altic resigned immediately after they approached him about about a “limited set” of suspicious financial activity they found in November 2017.

Altic engaged in multiple “deceptive and difficult-to-detect techniques to carry out his theft,” senior pastor Gregg Matte and deacon chairman Craig Bloodworth said in a statement.

The theft involved missions funds, they said, but Houston’s First was still able to provide designated money and resources to all of its ministry partners. The church’s insurance coverage paid $500,000 to reimburse some of the lost monies, and the church leadership also approved the use of unallocated contingency funds, according to the statement. Read more here

HOUSTON, Dec. 11, 2018—In November 2017, we discovered a limited set of suspicious financial activity related to Jerrell Altic. When we approached him about the matter, he immediately tendered his resignation. We reported our initial findings to law enforcement and our insurance provider, in keeping with our legal and fiduciary responsibilities, and began a thorough investigation conducted by staff leadership, relevant church committees and deacons as well as independent forensic accounting and legal experts.

This investigation, internally and by law enforcement, brought us to yesterday, December 10, when a Harris County grand jury indicted him for first degree felony theft of more than $800,000 of the church’s finances between 2011 and 2017, while he was employed here.

We have learned through the investigation process that, acting alone, Jerrell engaged in multiple deceptive and difficult-to-detect techniques to carry out this theft. That said, though his fraudulent activities involved missions funds, all of Houston’s First ministry partners received their designated monies, as his actions did not prevent our church from providing resources to local ministries, church plants or other strategic partners. Nevertheless, we have already enacted additional policies to help ensure all donations and expenses are protected and handled properly moving forward. The outside expertise we sought helped us not only to determine the extent of this serious violation of trust, but also provided recommendations on how our financial controls might be improved or strengthened.

Unfortunately, due to the sensitive nature of the legal and investigative procedures triggered by this matter, we have not been able to provide these details until now. While we were unable to inform the church body because of the ongoing investigation, we informed and kept updated the related church committees, including personnel, finance, and missions committees, along with key staff and the deacon body, throughout this process. These past months have been challenging and painful for us as the extent of Jerrell’s actions came to light and as we wrestled with the tension of wanting to inform the congregation, while also carefully following law enforcement’s lead in the investigation, balancing legal constraints with church procedures.

We are encouraged that our church’s insurance coverage paid $500,000, which reimbursed a significant part of the loss, while our church leadership approved using unallocated contingency funds to replace the balance.

As challenging as this discovery has been for everyone involved, we have also been encouraged by the continued generosity and passion for missions work from our congregation—including through generous, unsolicited financial gifts from those who have come to know of his wrongdoing.

We pray for God’s work to continue to be done at Houston’s First, and for Jerrell and his family. Houston’s First remains committed to the advancement of the Gospel in our city, our nation and around the world (Acts 1:8). We understand and take seriously our responsibility to properly steward the resources God gives us through the generosity of our church family.

In Him,


Gregg Matte, Senior Pastor
 


Craig Bloodworth, Deacon Chairman

 


If you go to the store to buy Meat, don't run to the Milk section or the Junk Food aisle looking for it!!

The Meat Section is the True Gospel of Jesus Christ.

The Milk Section is likened to those who will not preach on sin and Hell, just a feel good message, the Social gospel.

The Junk Food Isle is the outright false doctrine AKA the prosperity gospel, name it and claim it, the Hebraic Roots movement and other false teachings!!

Feasting on just Milk and Junk will eventually cause you great harm, you can count on it!!
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