The former treasurer of a Co Armagh church who defrauded almost £750,000 from parish funds in order “to prop up a lifestyle he could not afford” has been jailed.
Godfrey Ellis, from Clanconnel Gardens in Waringstown, pleaded guilty to two counts of fraud by abuse of position as his role of treasurer of Shankill Parish Church in Lurgan.
The 55-year-old admitted that between July 26, 2011 and February 9, 2020, he transferred £643,637.31 from the church’s bank account to his own personal and business accounts.
He also admitted that on dates between August 18, 2015 and January 7, 2020, he made payments totalling £102,313 on credit cards in his name. He also admitted a charge of forging a cheque on February 9, 2020.
His Honour Judge Patrick McGurgan KC, who described the offending as “a prolonged and systematic abuse of trust carried out by an accounting professional on his own church”, said that it was “incongruous that a man whose sole employment is to assist people in managing their finances was unable to do so with his own income”.
Adding that “what appears to potentially have been poor problem solving in the initial stages of his offending appears to have morphed into a habit of accessing church funds to prop up a lifestyle he wanted for his family, but could not afford”.
Outlining the facts of the case, Judge McGurgan explained that Ellis took over the accountancy business, Coleman and Company, in 2005.
In 2006, he was appointed treasurer of Shankill Parish Church of Ireland in Lurgan, an honorary unpaid position with “very significant responsibility”.
With the arrival of online banking, Ellis had sole access to the church’s accounts.
On February 11, 2020, Danske Bank contacted one of the parish trustees in relation to a signature purporting to be his on a cheque payable to Coleman and Company – the defendant’s company. This trustee confirmed he had not signed that cheque.
The parish minister, Reverend Mark Harvey, had likewise been contacted in relation to his purported signature on a cheque for £15,000, and while he confirmed that the signature was his, he stated he did not recognise the payee.
At a meeting with Danske Bank, it became clear that the parish accounts had been, in the words of Reverend Harvey, “cleared out”.
Initial examination of the church accounts suggested an overall loss of £277,000, however, a full review of the accounts was provided to the police which revealed a provable loss to the church of £643,637.31 in direct transfers to the defendant’s business.
There were also credit card payments from church funds of £102,313.
Ellis claimed he had initially transferred money to rectify cash flow problems in his own business arising from clients going bankrupt.
However, it was the prosecution’s view that “while it seems likely he may have intended to repay the funds, things quickly spiralled”.
In addition, the prosecution asserted that “this was a prolonged and systematic abuse of trust carried out by an accounting professional on his own church, his parish and fellow parishioners”.
A victim impact statement provided by the Venerable Mark Harvey, Archdeacon of Dromore and Rector of Shankill Parish, alluded to the loss of funds impacting maintenance work, ultimately leading to the “huge level of investment which they currently face to repair and renew the parish church, which is the largest such building in the Church of Ireland”.
One former slack vestry member summed up the general feeling in the parish, stating that the “betrayal of trust is at the heart of everything”.
Judge McGurgan read: “For me, the integrity of our church has been called into question at a time when we are seeking to develop our building in a strategic town centre location as a resource for the wider community.
“This case has cast a shadow, which may cause potential funders to be cautious about supporting us. The emotional impact of Mr Ellis’s crimes on us as a church community has been far-reaching… the gravity of Godfrey Ellis’s crimes against Shankill could so easily have decimated our parish.”
Judge McGurgan also referred to the breakdown of the defendant’s marriage.
“You were married for some 19 years, but on discovering this offending, your wife initiated divorce proceedings… [and] your children have lost faith in you since your arrest.”
He added: “The family’s expenditure was greater than your monthly income… you likened your offending behaviour to an addiction, one where apparently you could not stop withdrawing the money.
“I note that you deny living a lavish lifestyle, however, it is noted that you went on holiday each year, and on one occasion, you booked Disneyland in Florida, albeit I understand that was postponed. You accepted that you gave your children anything they wanted without any thought for the monetary value…”
Ellis was sentenced to 40 months for the first offence of fraud; 34 months for the second, and 20 months for the forgery charge – all to run concurrently.
Ellis was cuffed, a bag packed with his clothes handed to him, and led away to spend the next 20 months behind bars, after which he will serve the remaining 20 months on licence.
