Parishioners of three parishes were alerted this week about a theft of more than $500,000 at their churches — St. Joseph in Butchertown, Holy Name on South Third Street and Holy Spirit in Saint Matthews.
According to a statement from the archdiocese, the theft was discovered at Holy Name in September of 2014. A subsequent investigation showed that St. Joseph Church, which is clustered with Holy Name, also was missing funds, the statement said. The parishes’ business manager was suspected.
The archdiocese’s statement said the Louisville Metro Police Department widened the investigation and discovered that funds were also missing from Holy Spirit Church, where the suspect had served in the past, beginning in 1998.
The suspect, Lisa Roth, resigned from Holy Name and St. Joseph during the audits. She died in July before the investigation was completed, the statement said. WAVE 3 reported on Aug. 18 that the Fayette County coroner said Roth committed suicide.
The parish and finance councils of the three churches were informed about the investigation last spring, the statement said. A total of about $110,000 is missing from Holy Name, $130,000 is missing from St. Joseph and $275,000 is missing from Holy Spirit.
