Woman pleads guilty to stealing Posted On: Tuesday, Nov. 24 2009 05:06 AM By Jade Ortego
Killeen Daily Herald

BELTON – A Killeen woman pleaded guilty Monday to one count of misappropriation of funds and six counts of credit or debit card abuse for embezzling more than $90,000 from St. Christopher's Episcopal Church in 2007 and 2008.

During her employmemt as church secretary, Paula Marie Cecil wrote 95 fraudulent checks from the Killeen church to herself, up to $1,500 each, from April 16, 2007, to Jan. 7, 2008. Most were between $500 and $900, and they were signed with the stamped signature of the church's rector, the Rev. Paul Moore.

Cecil cashed the checks at various locations throughout the county.

Officials in the church were notified of Cecil's actions through an Extraco Bank employee who noticed suspicious behavior.

Cecil had worked for the church for 18 months before being fired in January 2008.

Cecil, 42, of Evadale, was arrested in May 2008 and originally held on a $100,000 bond at the Bell County Jail. Misappropriation of funds is a third-degree felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison; each count of credit and debit card abuse is a state jail felony punishable by up to two years in state jail.

Since the incident, the church started implementing security measures that require more than one person to write checks from the church fund. Judge Joe Carroll of the 27th District Court will sentence Cecil on Dec. 1. The district attorney's office is recommending six months jail time, followed by 10 years probation and an order to repay.

"It brings closure to the church and myself. We're rather relieved it's not going to trial," Moore said.

"Forgiveness is pretty essential to our Christian faith, and it's time for that now. It doesn't mean forgetting, but it does mean moving on."

In other court action, Judge Martha Trudo of the 264th District Court sentenced Harold Zebulen Meeks, 33, of Fort Hood, to 10 years of probation for sexual assault.

Meeks was found guilty of assaulting a 14-year-old girl in front of her younger brother in a motel in Killeen on Sept. 13, 2006.

The victim and her brother gave statements to the Child Advocacy Center. The brother testified to witnessing Meeks assault his sister while she repeatedly said, "No" and "Stop."

Contact Jade Ortego at jortego@kdhnews.com or (254) 501-7553.