ST. LOUIS (ABP) — A former Southern Baptist pastor in Missouri has been indicted on charges of using his position to defraud church members into loaning him money that he did not repay.
Danny O'Guin
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According to St. Louis media, a four-count federal indictment for mail fraud accuses Danny O'Guin, former pastor of Parker Road Baptist Church in Florissant, Mo., of using false pretenses to convince elderly church members to loan him money that he told them was to repair residences he owned out of the state.
He allegedly told the parishioners to "keep quiet" about the loans. When church members inquired about his failure to repay the loans, the indictment alleges, he would borrow money from other church members to pay the debt. Other alleged schemes include writing letters promising that payment was forthcoming and sending checks with "mistakes" on them.
In one instance, authorities say, he wrote a check for $1,125 to satisfy a debt of $10,125. When the lender pointed out the error, O'Guin sent a substitute check that bounced.
Church leaders said O'Guin was pastor of the suburban St. Louis congregation from 2006 until February 2009, when he resigned after allegations against him prompted conflict in the church. He reportedly now lives with his son in Texas.
Before coming to Parker Road O'Guin was pastor of Tower Grove Baptist Church in St. Louis for 10 years. He was elected as a trustee of the Southern Baptist Convention North American Mission Board in 1999 and in 2003 and chaired the Missouri Baptist Convention's credentials committee in 2008.
Authorities say O'Guin, 62, stole thousands of dollars between June 2006 and March 2009 from church members who felt obliged to lend him money because he was in a position of religious authority. If convicted, each of the four counts carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and/or fines up to $250,000.
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Bob Allen is senior writer for Associated Baptist Press.