MICHIGAN
The Detroit News
By Mike Martindale
The Detroit News
Troy — A spokesman for the Archdiocese of Detroit said Wednesday a longtime church employee who sold a $500,000 Florida condominium to the priest who is the focus of an embezzlement probe is no longer employed at St. Thomas More Church.
At the center of financial questions is the Rev. Edward Belczak, 67, the popular pastor of the Troy church for nearly 30 years. He has not been criminally charged, but was “temporarily excluded” as head of the church and also his church-provided lodgings Jan. 22 after an archdiocese audit revealed $429,000 in “questionable financial transactions and practices.”
“We are aware of the Florida land records and deal but we are not an investigative agency,” said Joseph Kohn, spokesman for the archdiocese. “Priests can make whatever purchases they want and other church workers and members are not restricted in making sales to them. Or, for that matter, making gifts if they feel it’s appropriate.”
Kohn said Belczak’s annual pay as parish pastor would fall in the “mid-$30,000 range.”
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