A former Kansas priest, Father Richard Storey, is accused of using a parish credit card to steal nearly $160,000 from the Church and spend it on cruises, travel, shopping, and personal expenses. He previously served at Curé of Ars Church in Leawood, Kansas, and is charged with theft of property or services worth more than $100,000.
According to court records, Storey surrendered to police on May 23 and was released on $25,000 bail. He pleaded not guilty at a hearing on June 2, and his next court date is set for July 15. The allegations surfaced after he resigned in September 2025 following an unrelated criminal investigation.
After his departure, the Archdiocese of Kansas City carried out a routine internal review of parish finances, then passed the findings to Leawood police. A court affidavit says an audit of expenses from 2021 through 2025 found suspicious charges totaling more than $159,000 on the parish card.
Investigators say more than $77,000 went to cruises alone. One July 2023 cruise included a cash withdrawal of more than $23,000 labeled in the credit card records as a casino cash advance, and another cruise included a withdrawal of more than $25,000. The review also found more than $27,000 in travel costs to London, Paris, Dublin, New York and other destinations, more than $11,000 for prescriptions, medical care, glasses, dental treatment and weight-loss services, nearly $6,000 for clothing and shopping, and about $25,000 paid to Storey’s personal credit card.
The affidavit also says Storey made “donations” to the church using the church’s own credit card, which did not bring in new money but could have inflated reported giving. Church officials called the revelations “very painful news” for Catholics and said the matter should run its legal course, while Archbishop Sean McKnight stressed that Storey is presumed innocent until proven guilty in court or in church proceedings.
