Police have accused a Catholic priest in Montgomery County of stealing over $40,000 from a Chester County parish in order to fund his addiction to cell phone games.
The Rev. Lawrence Kozak, 51, of Pottstown, has been charged with theft and related crimes, according to reports from 6ABC and the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Officials said that an accountant working at St. Thomas More Church in Pottstown discovered a number of Apple transactions on credit card statements in 2022. The ID used to make these purchases was registered to Kozak, the Inquirer said.
Those expenses went toward such mobile phone games as “Wizard of Oz” slots, Candy Crush Saga, Cash Frenzy, Mario Kart Tour, and Pokemon Go, police said.
Investigators later found that Kozak’s Amazon account had used the parish’s credit card to buy a backpack, an Amazon Fire tablet, and a children’s chemistry set, all of which were sent to Kozak’s goddaughter’s home.
When interviewed by police, Kozak said he was seeking counseling for his gaming addiction. He also initially denied that he used the parish credit cards for those purchases, although he later conceded he could have used them accidentally, the Inquirer reported.
The business manager for St. Thomas More, however, told authorities she had asked Kozak about unexplained purchases on credit card statements and warned him about mixing personal and business expenses.
Kozak has been removed from his position and was placed on administrative leave in November 2022, according to a spokesperson for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.
