ARCHDIOCESAN INTERNAL REVIEW REPORT OF CATHEDRAL-BASILICA AND THE CATHOLIC CEMETERIES

GUAM
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Agana

The Archdiocese of Agana in the past several months has been conducting an internal review of the Dulce Nombre de Maria Cathedral-Basilica and The Catholic Cemeteries of Guam, Inc. following a determination by the accounting firm of Deloitte & Touche, that The Catholic Cemeteries was not auditable. Following the appointment of the current Rector, Monsignor David C. Quitugua, grave irregularities were discovered involving the administration of the entities which were formerly administered by Monsignor James Benavente (“Msgr. Benavente”), prior to July 25, 2014. Specifically, the following are some of the irregularities noted:

(1) Msgr. Benavente as the administrator of the Cathedral-Basilica and The Catholic Cemeteries developed projects which resulted in the Archdiocese incurring $7 million dollars ($7,029,853.93), which were consolidated in 2009 from different loans held at the Bank of Hawaii and Bank of Guam to First Hawaiian Bank, and re-financed again in 2012. These two entities have the largest ndebtedness of all other entities in the Archdiocese, and in 2013, a review of the principal balances indicated that the overall reduction of their indebtedness was less than the average 20% reduction by other Archdiocesan entities. Another project that was formerly administered by Msgr. Benavente is indebted for $2.2 million dollars as of 2013, and due to its financial condition has only been paying interest on its outstanding debt, up to August 2014. These three entities constitute approximately 37% of the total indebtedness of the Archdiocese (the remaining indebtedness represents all parishes and catholic schools).

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