CLEARFIELD – A Hawk Run woman is accused of stealing over $14,000 from a local church.
Dorothy Louise Lowe, 77, is charged by Clearfield state police with 47 counts each of felony theft by unlawful taking and receiving stolen property.
According to the affidavit of probable cause filed at the Kylertown magistrate’s office, Lowe served as treasurer for St. Laurence Episcopal Church in Osceola Mills Borough.
Allegedly, she wrote two checks totaling $2,500 to herself in February of 2022, as well as got a debit card for the church bank account.
Allegedly, she made 33 ATM withdrawals totaling $10,870 between Feb. 20, 2022 and Sept. 19, 2022, and paid for a personal auto repair bill of $107.05 on June 16, 2022.
She was also in charge of taking Sunday donations and ensuring their deposit at the bank. There was a difference of $1,126 between the amount collected and amount deposited, state police said.
In all, Lowe stole $14,603.05 from the church, according to the affidavit, and took responsibility for the theft in an interview with state police Jan. 16.
Lowe waived her right to a preliminary hearing Wednesday, sending her case to county court. Currently, bail is set at $25,000, unsecured.
