A pastor in Chicago has been accused of stealing almost $1 million from a federal food program aimed at feeding poor children, and using the funds to buy an expensive Bentley automobile, Breitbart reports.
The pastor, Rev. Clarence Smith Jr. of New Life Impact Church, has been charged with fraud after prosecutors claim that he appropriated over $900,000 that was given to the church in order to fund the food program, which is funded by the Illinois State Board of Education.
But instead of putting the funds into the program, the pastor allegedly used the money to purchase a “Bentley Flying Spur luxury sedan” worth $142,000. Smith pleaded not guilty to four counts of fraud, and later issued a statement in which he “totally denied any and all allegations of fraud,” saying that he was determined to “let this play out in court.”