BishopAccountability.org
	Lawyers Seek to Have Charges against Former Priest Dismissed Robert Ascolese Accused of Embezzling Nearly $1 Million from a New Jersey Church By Jay Richards Morning Call March 7, 2008 http://www.mcall.com/news/local/all-b2_3ascolese.6302994mar07,0,4293218.story Attorneys for Robert Ascolese, the former priest accused of embezzling nearly $1 million from a Washington, N.J., church, and his co-defendants asked a state judge Thursday to dismiss the charges. Superior Court Judge John Pursel said during a hearing in Belvidere, N.J., that he would rule on the request later. The defense lawyers accused Assistant Warren County Prosecutor Craig Barto of giving the grand jury only theories but no evidence of lottery rigging. Barto said he presented a lot of evidence, including fictitious and forged checks to the grand jury that presented the indictments. Ascolese, 46, now living in Perth Amboy, N.J., was indicted in September 2006 on five counts of theft, seven counts of forgery, three counts of issuing forged checks, one count of falsifying public records, seven counts of tampering with public records, seven counts of theft by deception, and one count of conspiracy. He allegedly embezzled nearly $1 million from St. Joseph Roman Catholic Church through Powerball-style raffles between 2001 and 2005 while he was the parish priest. William P. Quilban, 66, and and his wife, Stella, 68, both of Hampton, N.J., were indicted on charges of conspiracy and theft by deception. In arguing for the court to dismiss the charges, Ascolose attorney Melvin Wright said, "Here we have a man who has given his life to God. Theft by deception usually involves keeping funds for personal gain, but we don't have that here. All the funds went to charitable causes." Ascolese bought excess church lottery tickets under other names when sales were slow, something another attorney told Ascolese was legal, Wright said. Wright said there was no proof of criminal intent. Pursel said he could agree with some of Wright's arguments if one of those fictitious people won one lottery, but Ascolese "won every time." Wright countered, saying, "Just because the man won five years in a row, it is not enough" to prove theft by deception. Thomas Fischer, the lawyer representing William Quilban, said there is only evidence that his client donated money to the church, which was matched by his employer for $200,000. Wright and Fischer explained the Quilbans were hit with capital gains taxes five months later, and Ascolese allegedly "loaned" them some of the donated funds to cover the taxes.
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.