A Pennsylvania priest is accused of allegedly helping himself to more than $740,000 from churches, donors, parishioners and his own mother — and prosecutors say the money funded a lifestyle that included drugs, hotel hookups, cruises, international travel and one very expensive Mustang.
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Gregory Allen Madeya, 69, of West Mifflin allegedly took nearly $320,000 from three Pennsylvania churches and another $250,000 from his elderly mother, according to TribLive.
Prosecutors put the total alleged losses involving the churches, parishioners, donors and his mother at $740,409.96.
And judging by the accusations, Madeya allegedly had a rather ambitious idea of what counted as a personal expense.
The alleged spending spree gets pretty wild
Prosecutors say some of the money allegedly came straight from church collection envelopes.
According to the allegations, Madeya used some of the cash to buy heroin, which he allegedly exchanged for sex acts with a man he met at hotels in Pennsylvania.
He is also accused of using the money for overseas vacations and cruise ship tours. Then came the grand finale of the alleged shopping spree: a $35,500 Ford Mustang that prosecutors say he gave to the same man, who eventually moved in with him.
A Mustang is already a significant gift. A Mustang allegedly purchased with somebody else’s money is where things get considerably messier.
And apparently, the alleged financial adventure had room for even more.
The churches allegedly lost more than cash
Investigators say Madeya withdrew $75,000 from the general fund of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Ukrainian Catholic Church in Derry Township between 2021 and 2022, while serving as a priest there.
He was suspended from the church in February 2024.
Prosecutors also accuse him of taking money from two other Ukrainian Catholic churches in Pennsylvania, in nearby McKeesport and Jeannette.
In one case, the alleged haul wasn’t just money. Investigators say Madeya took a $19,400 gold chalice from a church.
At that price, it’s less “church keepsake” and more “please put the valuables somewhere with a lock.”
A three-year investigation followed
Authorities say investigators spent three years looking into the alleged thefts.
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During the investigation, they allegedly found collection envelopes in Madeya’s trash. They also found photos of debit cards and bank documents on his personal devices, according to the Pennsylvania attorney general’s office.
Prosecutors say his alleged financial dealings also involved his mother, who they say was elderly and unable to manage her own finances.
“It is unconscionable to see a supposed man of God exploiting not only the churches he served, but his own mother,” Pennsylvania AG Dave Sunday said in a statement, noting that the elderly woman was “of the age when she could not manage her own finances.”
“This defendant abused the trust of those around him, and left them to recover from mammoth financial losses.”
That’s a particularly serious part of the case: prosecutors aren’t just alleging that church money disappeared, but that someone close to Madeya was allegedly financially exploited too.
From Florida back to Pennsylvania
Madeya was arrested in Vero Beach, Florida, on Aug. 14 and extradited to Pennsylvania, according to The Latrobe Bulletin.
He was charged with theft, financial exploitation of an older adult and fraud. His bail was set at $25,000, and he is due back in court next month. The charges are allegations, and Madeya has not been convicted.
Still, prosecutors have laid out an alleged spending trail involving church funds, drugs, vacations, hotel encounters, a gold chalice and a $35,500 Mustang.
That’s quite a financial itinerary for money that was allegedly supposed to stay in the collection plate.