N.J. Church’s Former Accountant Admits to $4-Million Scam

A California man pleaded guilty Tuesday to defrauding a New Jersey megachurch out of more than $4 million while serving as its accountant, NJ Advance Media reports. Donald Gridiron, 51, of Pomona, Calif., faces more than 20 years in prison after admitting to federal counts of wire fraud and filing a false tax return.

Mr. Gridiron, a certified public accountant, managed the books for the nondenominational Agape Family Worship Center in Rahway, N.J., from May 2007 to March 2014. During that time he arranged hundreds of payments from Agape’s bank account to accounts under his control, prosecutors said, including one belonging to a nonprofit California golf organization where he served as treasurer.