Black Louisiana Pastor Found Guilty of Stealing $340K from His Congregation
In news that can only be described as “God is not pleased,” a Black Louisiana pastor was convicted of stealing funds from his church. The story, which includes extravagant purchases, gambling and more, is almost too outrageous to be true. Let’s get into it.
According to an official filing from the Eastern District of Louisiana’s U.S. Attorney’s Office, Pastor Dale Sanders was convicted on 25 counts of “wire fraud, access device fraud, and obstruction of a federal investigation related to a years-long investigation.”
Sanders—who served as a pastor at the Fifth African Baptist Church in New Orleans and Second New Guide Missionary Baptist Church in Metairie, per the New York Post—reportedly stole money from one church and transferred it into his own bank account to fund lavish purchases related to dining, his living expenses, and gambling. He also used one of the church’s debit cards for “unauthorized personal transactions” and took out cash for various “goods and services totaling over $340,000.” According to prosecutors, his fraudulent activity lasted from April 2020 to April 2024.
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In an April 2026 post to his official Instagram, Sanders commented on the ordeal, explaining that the issue centered around a man who worked at Second New Guide and was allegedly “mishandling” and “misguiding” the money and books for the church. He claimed that the board asked him to remove the man from his position, but because Sanders was a new face at the church at the time, he didn’t feel comfortable doing so. However, as the church faced more financial issues, Sanders eventually spoke up about it and allegedly tried to shield the man from scrutiny.
Later, before the unnamed man left the church, Sanders said he agreed to take a pay cut to help keep the church afloat as the building’s “funds had been depleted.” Over the next four years, he said his paycheck went to nothing, which led to issues in his marriage, the repossession of his car and more. The pastor went on to tell his followers that the man he tried to help is allegedly behind the charges he faced.
“It is this same gentleman who is now accusing me of malfeasance against our church. And so now I have to stand and answer to charges that are unfounded based on theft. Or the fact that I’ve done something wrong and have taken from our church,” Sanders said at the time. “Let me submit to you today that I am a giver and I’ve always been a giver. I don’t steal, and I have not stolen from a church I’ve pastored. The lies that are swirling about Dale Sanders now will all have to be answered to, my assumption is, in a court of law.”
Sanders went on to say that he didn’t “choose this fighting ground” and claimed that he was “owed over $200,000 in arrears pay that he never asked for” or “insisted he’d be given.” He explained that this man was only bringing about theft claims against him as a way to “reestablish his power” in the church.
The disgraced pastor is set to be sentenced in October and faces up to 20 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release after his sentence is complete, a $100 mandatory special assessment fee per count, and a $250,000 fine, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office.
