Former Pennsylvania priest accused of stealing nearly $750K from church community, family member

A former priest from western Pennsylvania is facing nearly a dozen felony charges and is accused of stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from three churches and his own mother.

The Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office said that Madeya, who was a priest for multiple Pittsburgh-area Ukrainian Catholic churches, was arrested on Friday in Vero Beach, Florida, and is awaiting extradition to face charges related to alleged theft totaling nearly $750,000.

Madeya, 69, is accused of stealing from three churches, the Knights of Columbus and his own mother, according to the Attorney General's Office. The charges, according to court records, are based out of Jeannette in Westmoreland County. 

"It is unconscionable to see a supposed man of God exploiting not only the churches he served, but his own mother," Pennsylvania Attorney General Sunday said. "This defendant abused the trust of those around him, and left them to recover from mammoth financial losses."  

The Attorney General's Office said that a multiyear investigation into Madeya's conduct uncovered more than $319,000 in misappropriation of funds from multiple church-related people and entities and more than $230,000 that was misappropriated from his mother's investment accounts.

During their investigation, the Attorney General's Office said it learned that Madeya sold a gold chalice to a jeweler for nearly $20,000, while acting as a representative for the church. 

It's unclear when Madeya is expected to be brought back to Pennsylvania to face the charges.