The South Greensburg fire chief is accused of taking $170,000 from the department, according to Pennsylvania State Police.
A felony theft charge was filed this week against Matthew Thomas White, 49, of Hempfield. He is in custody in South Carolina, according to Trooper Steve Limani.
Police were notified a few days ago by White’s family that they were concerned for his well-being, which led authorities to look at his bank accounts and cellphone. Limani said such a review is typical for that type of an investigation.
It appeared White was in South Carolina, he said.
Police also enlisted help tracking White’s movements from the fire department, which Limani said revealed withdrawals connected to White.
“That obviously started to make it more apparent as to why he was doing what he was doing,” Limani said.
State police said in a criminal complaint that White transferred $170,000 from the fire department’s account into his own bank account since 2023. Troopers accuse him of using fire department funds to buy donations through an online checkout system and then transfer the money to himself, according to court papers.
“We usually find out about these things and then the person goes astray, but this was actually sort of the opposite,” Limani said. “We were looking for him for his safety and ultimately in looking for him found there was this large discrepancy in funds that were missing from the fire department’s coffers.”
White had not been arraigned Wednesday. He did not have an attorney listed in online court records.
Limani said troopers are looking into any organization where he had access to money. White’s voicemail indicated he is associated with St. Clair Cemetery in Hempfield.
Limani suggested any organization that holds money have more than one person able to control, or be notified of, withdrawals or transfers of funds.
“I think that is the only way in today’s day and age,” he said.
Neither White nor fire officials could be reached.
Editor’s Note: This story’s image has been updated. A image showing Southwest Greensburg Fire Department was incorrectly posted initially.
