For over three decades, Rev. Charles Southall III has led the First Emanuel Baptist Church. Under his leadership, the church’s ministry has grown to include multiple locations in New Orleans and Baton Rouge. He also created the Spirit of Excellence Academy, a charter school serving both cities. Unfortunately, on Oct. 18, the congregation’s leader admitted to money laundering.

According to FOX 8 Live, the 64-year-old pastor came clean after FBI charges were pressed last month. Their investigation determined that Southall laundered almost $900,000 from donations, congregants’ tithes and church-owned real estate assets for his personal use.

Evidence of fraud began in New Orleans and continued when he moved to Baton Rouge in 2005, after Hurricane Katrina.

According to NOLA.com, investigators said “he exploited his position as the leader of his church, soliciting and then stealing tithes and donations from parishioners.”

Southall racked up a long list of transactions over the years. NOLA.com states Southall extracted a $10,000 tithe from a parishioner in 2019. He then solicited donations from a parishioner over four years for charity and church building improvements, but embezzled $106,408 of the donations to his own accounts.

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