MULESHOE, Texas (KCBD) – 42-year-old Nathan Webb pleaded guilty to wire fraud on Friday, admitting that he stole $261,245 from Christ the King Cathedral from August 2019 through March 2021.
Webb was hired to manage financial accounts for the church, and admitted to using PayPal and Venmo to transfer church money to his personal accounts. Then he falsified bank statements in his reports to the church and the Catholic Diocese of Lubbock.
The factual resume from the plea agreement says, “In all, from on or about September 12, 2019, to on or about March 2, 2021, Webb made approximately 171 unauthorized transfers of money from the Church’s bank account to himself via PayPal and approximately 61 unauthorized transfers of money from the Church’s bank account to himself via Venmo. Combined, the unauthorized transfers of money totaled an approximate amount of $261,245.”
The Diocese confronted Webb in early March, the last day a transfer was made to Webb’s PayPal account, before he closed his account on on the same day.
The federal indictment claims Webb was in Columbia, South America, when he made some of the transfers.
Webb was arrested by Colombian immigration authorities on June 16, after he used his U.S. passport at a hotel. He is currently being held by the Bailey County Sheriff’s Office, on hold for federal marshals.
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