Former Cleveland, Tennessee, church manager pleads guilty to $1.5 million fraud

Feb. 27—The former business manager of a Cleveland church pleaded guilty Monday to fraud for using tens of thousands of dollars of church money for personal expenses, according to federal court filings.

David Michael Apps, 50, used more than $1.5 million in church funds for his own purchases while working there between 2014 and 2021, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District.

At least $61,000 of that was used to pay for firearms, gun accessories and other outdoor supplies, court documents state. Another $177,000 was charged to Apps' own firearms business, FMJ Supply, according to court filings.

Apps also used church credit cards to buy plane tickets and a hotel stay for himself and his daughter, multiple luxury watches, a storage unit, a boat and boating insurance, according to filings in U.S. District Court.

Prosecutors reached a plea deal with Apps earlier this month.

"This happens a lot in white collar cases, where we actually have already talked to the defendant and interviewed him," said Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven Neff by phone Monday. "We worked out a plea agreement before I ever filed anything."

As the business manager of Broad Street United Methodist Church, Apps controlled the bank accounts, checkbook, expenses and receipts. The church did not immediately respond to a request for comment Monday.

The fraud also included underpaying the church's payroll taxes, causing it to fall behind by more than $900,000, according to court documents.

"Hundreds of thousands of dollars of assets" related to the fraud have been turned back over to the church since the FBI began investigating, Apps' attorney Lee Davis previously told the Chattanooga Times Free Press.

Apps is set to be sentenced in July. The maximum punishment for a wire fraud conviction is 20 years in prison. The U.S. Attorney's Office said in its Monday release that Apps may also face possible fines, restitution or be forced to forfeit some of his possessions.

Neff said Monday he asked the court to include a condition on Neff's bond, which ensures he shows up for his sentencing hearing, to forbid him from taking on additional credit charges or enter financial agreements without approval from a probation officer.

Contact Ellen Gerst at egerst@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6319.

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