Former Sutter County Church Administrator Sentenced to 5 Years in Prison for Fraud and Identity Thef

ChurchPhoto byPhoto by Michael Morse:

Chanell Easton, 38, of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge John A. Mendez to five years and one month in prison for her involvement in a multi-year embezzlement scheme, as announced by the Department of Justice.

In October 2023, Easton pleaded guilty to 22 counts of wire fraud. Following a bench trial on March 5, 2024, she was also found guilty of two counts of aggravated identity theft.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Easton served as the church administrator at a church in Yuba City from 2013 to 2018. During her tenure, she embezzled over $360,000 from the church, including funds intended for its food pantry and youth ministry. Easton used credit cards associated with the church to finance personal expenses, including visits to a hair salon, purchases at retail stores and online retailers, a vacation rental, and VIP concert tickets. She then paid off these expenses using the church’s funds. One of the credit cards Easton used belonged to the church’s youth minister, whose identity she exploited to make unauthorized personal purchases on Zappos.com. By using the youth minister’s identity, Easton was able to conceal her embezzlement and deflect suspicion, allowing her scheme to continue undetected.

In addition to misusing church credit cards, Easton transferred money directly from the church’s bank accounts to her personal account, paid off her own credit card balance, and covered her personal cellphone bills and purchases of new phones. She also wrote checks from the church’s accounts to herself and others for personal expenses, forging the signatures of the church’s treasurer or the head volunteer of the church’s food pantry.

A hearing to determine the restitution amount is scheduled for Nov. 19, 2024.

This case was the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elliot Wong prosecuted the case.