Ex-con Trusted with Church Finances Embezzles Again, Gets 3 Years" Prison

By Aimee Green
The Oregonian
December 9, 2016

http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2016/12/ex-con_who_was_trusted_with_ch.html

Christine Marie Culver stole more than $73,000 while working as a bookkeeper at Metropolitan Community Church in Northeast Portland. (Multnomah County Sheriff's Office)

A 63-year-old woman who embezzled more than $73,000 from her Northeast Portland church was sentenced Friday to three years in prison.

It won't be Christine Marie Culver's first stint in prison. This is at least the third time Culver has been convicted of charges related to fraud or embezzlement, stretching back nearly 40 years.

In this latest case, she was entrusted as the bookkeeper at Metropolitan Community Church, at Northeast 24th Avenue and Broadway. She stole $73,208 over the course of about 21/2 years -- 2013 to 2015.

The church learned of Culver's theft after the Oregon Department of Revenue contacted the church because its payroll taxes weren't being paid, said prosecutor Ryan Lufkin.

In November, Culver pleaded guilty to first-degree aggravated theft and identity theft in Multnomah County Circuit Court.

Her theft history stretches back to her mid-20, when she was convicted in 1978 of negotiating a bad check. She apparently didn't serve prison time.

In 1984, records say she lost her job in Yamhill County after her bosses discovered what they believed was a past embezzlement from her previous job at the Oregon Employment Department. It's unclear if she was convicted in that case or if the 1978 conviction was related to that alleged embezzlement.

In 1997, Culver was convicted of first-degree aggravated theft, forgery and official misconduct for embezzling $225,000 from her job at the city of Molalla. She served one year and a month in prison.

"We usually don't get people doing this two or three times," Lufkin said.

At Friday's sentencing hearing, Culver said she's a survivor of sexual abuse and emotional abuse from her childhood. She said she has low self-esteem and spent the stolen money on achieving a higher standard of living and impressing her friends by showering them with gifts.

Culver lived in Canby. As part of her sentenced, she must repay the money she stole.