GEORGIA
WRDW

By: Christie Ethridge

Sunday, Nov. 10, 2013

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW) — News 12 confirms a priest has been removed for theft of funds at St. Mary on the Hill Catholic Church.

According to the church, Father Avery Hanna, a Parochial Vicar at the church, has been placed on administrative leave and no longer resides at the church.

Pastor Gerald Ragan made the announcement to church members at mass on Sunday.

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Savannah has released this statement:

“Father Avery Hanna, a priest of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Savannah, has been placed on administrative leave by the Diocese as a result of criminal charges involving the theft of church property. Father Hanna, a native of the Bahamas and an Assistant Pastor at St. Mary on the Hill in Augusta, Georgia, has been placed on administrative leave as a result of his theft of tuition…