Barrington Woman Charged in Thefts from Phila. Archdiocese

By Jim Walsh
Courier-Post
March 13, 2012

http://www.courierpostonline.com/article/20120313/NEWS01/303130035/Barrington-woman-charged-thefts-from-Phila-archdiocese?odyssey=nav|head

A South Jersey woman is accused of stealing more than $900,000 while working as a financial officer for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.

Anita Guzzardi, 42, of Barrington allegedly stole the funds from 2005 until mid-2011, the District Attorney’s Office in Philadelphia said Tuesday. Guzzardi, who joined the archdiocese in 1989, held multiple finance-related posts and was appointed chief financial officer on July 1, 2011.

Authorities said an investigation began in July 2011, when American Express contacted the DA’s office over suspicious activity with two accounts in Guzzardi’s name. Investigators learned Guzzardi allegedly used 184 checks from the archdiocese’s general fund to pay her American Express bills over almost six years. She also allegedly used 146 archdiocesan checks to pay her personal Chase credit card.

In a statement, the archdiocese said it had “worked closely” with the District Attorney’s Office, while also conducting an internal investigation. “Insurance will cover most of the costs for embezzled funds and a portion of the fees for the internal investigation,” the statement said.

The District Attorney’s Office said it has recovered $150,000 from Guzzardi, who turned herself in shortly after 8 a.m. Tuesday.

The archdiocese said the alleged thefts did not affect the archdiocese’s capital campaign or its annual Catholic Charities charity drive. The missing money played no role in the recent decision to close many parochial schools, it added.

Archbishop Charles Caput did not address the allegations on Tuesday, but in a recent column he said, “People are angry about this loss and they’re right. So am I.”

“Precisely because religious organizations run on the good will of the people they serve and the dedication of their staffs, they can easily become too trusting in their internal safeguards,” Chaput wrote. “But that only makes the need for tight financial controls and accounting procedures more urgent.”

Chaput said “new procedures are in place in the areas where the embezzlement occurred” and more precautions are planned.

The archdiocese said it placed Guzzardi on administrative leave on July 14, one day after learning of the investigation, and that she was “terminated” on July 22.

She is charged with theft by deception, theft by receiving stolen property and theft by unlawful taking. Guzzardi also is accused of forgery and unlawful use of a computer, according to the District Attorney’s Office.

Reach Jim Walsh at (856) 486-2646 or jwalsh@gannett.com