Canonsburg priest facing hundreds of felony charges for allegedly stealing over $100K from church

CANONSBURG, Pa. — A Canonsburg priest is facing hundreds of felony charges after he allegedly stole over $100,000 from his church.

George Athanasiou, 37, is a well known and beloved assistant priest at All Saints Greek Orthodox Church in North Strabane Township.

Athanasiou was arrested Thursday and is accused of stealing money mostly through illegally cashing checks.

Investigators say between April 2022 and mid-November 2023, Athanasiou made 219 unauthorized withdrawals from the church account, totalling $117,000.

Athanasiou reportedly admitted to police he took the money because of “personal hardships”.  When asked how much he took he said it could be $117,000 in checks and five thousand in cash.

The metropolitan of Pittsburgh sent a letter to the church community today, saying in part, “As you may have heard, Fr. George Athanasiou, your beloved assistant priest, was arrested today and charged with theft of parish funds.

The arrest comes following internal investigation, initiated by members of the parish leadership.”

The letter goes on to say Fr. George has been suspended from priestly ministry until the conclusion of the legal proceedings.

The district attorney tells Channel 11 they are still investigating.

Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts.

Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW

©2023 Cox Media Group