Former SBC missionary accused of embezzling now suspected in insurance scam

GULF SHORES, Ala. (ABP) -- The International Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention declined to press criminal embezzlement charges in 2005 against a man now accused of stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars in an Alabama insurance scam.

Benton Gray Harvey and an accomplice are suspected of scamming hundreds of thousands of dollars from residents of the Alabama Gulf Coast.

According to legal documents obtained by the Mobile Press-Register , the IMB won a judgment of $359,499.62 against Harvey on March 15, 2005.

The suspect, under the name Gray Harvey, served through the mission board as an accountant for a Baptist outpost in Istanbul.

IMB trustees fired Harvey over allegations that he stole hundreds of thousands of dollars earmarked for earthquake relief and reportedly decided against pressing charges, citing concerns for missionary safety.

The board settled the case for the amount of loss that could be documented -- though some observers believe the amount actually missing could be larger -- and pledged not to talk about the settlement.

Wade Burleson, a former IMB trustee who joined the board after fellow trustees accepted the confidentiality agreement, said he argued vehemently at his first board meeting that the IMB had "a moral obligation" to file criminal charges. But his fellow trustees rejected his argument.

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Oh, never mind

peace to you:praying:

 

drfuss: I suppose the rationale for keeping quiet is that it is best for the people that they don't know. Many churches also fall into this trap by letting pastors who are sex predators and/or thieves, just leave quietly. Of course, if they are good speakers, these pastors show up in another church and repeat their previous actions. This also occurs in denominational churches where the denomination controls the pastor appointments. Bad situations need to be fixed, not just covered up.

No one should be surprised about the IMB operating secretly. They went way beyond the convention's desires in exceeding the BF&M criteria by secretly imposing narrow criteria on missionary candidates. Burleson exposed those secret, behind the scenes, actions which is why they forced him off the IMB. It makes one wonder what else they are secretly doing using our CP money, since Burleson is no longer there.