Woman Allegedly Steals Over Half A Million From Church To Fund Lifestyle

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A NJ Woman Allegedly Stole $561K from Church to Pay For Her Wedding, Car Loan and Rent

According to NBC 10, a New Jersey woman is being accused of stealing mad money  from the church where she volunteered in order to pay for her wedding, rent and bills.

Taisha D. Smith-DeJoseph, 43, was recently arrested and charged with theft by deception, computer criminal activity, misapplication of entrusted property and other related offenses after robbing a church blind.

Smith-DeJoseph was reportedly a volunteer at St. Paul’s Baptist Church in Florence Township, New Jersey, where she was put in charge of overseeing the church’s finances. Smith-DeJoseph allegedly embezzled more than $561,000 from the church over 5 years, opening electronic bank accounts for St. Paul’s and using the funds for personal expenses.

She went as far as writing reimbursement checks to herself from St. Paul’s bank accounts and fabricating monthly statements to hide the church’s true financial state. This is the money she reportedly used to pay her car loans, rent, credit card expenses, satellite television, cell phone bills and for her wedding at a venue in Burlington County.

Smith-DeJoseph didn’t file income tax returns between 2014 and 2018 in order to hide the embezzlement scheme from the government.