Denver pastor pleads in insurance fraud case
Pastor Dale Morgan
Denver pastor pleads in insurance fraud case*
By IVAN MORENO,
Associated Press Writer
CENTENNIAL, Colo. - A prominent Denver-area pastor accused of falsifying
insurance documents to funnel money to church groups he controlled
pleaded guilty Thursday to felony theft and was sentenced to serve
probation and pay restitution.
In exchange for the guilty plea by the Rev. Acen Phillips, Arapahoe
County prosecutors dropped 12 other counts against him, and AIG Life
Insurance Co. dropped a federal lawsuit.
Phillips was sentenced to eight years' probation and ordered to pay
$500,000 in restitution. He was also sentenced to perform 100 hours of
community service and told to attend a theft-offenders class and a
victim empathy group.
Phillips, founder of New Birth Temple of Praise Community Baptist
Church, was accused of defrauding AIG of $575,000. He could have faced
as many as 81 years in prison and up to $5 million in fines if convicted
of all counts.
Phillips said he was deeply sorry.
"I would like to apologize to the court and my community," he said. "I
would certainly like the opportunity to redeem myself to the community."
At issue were claims filed under a group life insurance policy taken out
for American Church United, which prosecutors say was headed by Phillips.
Prosecutors had accused Phillips, of suburban Aurora, of falsifying
documents to funnel money to church groups he controlled, sometimes
showing up at funerals to make contact with family members about filing
an insurance claim.
In at least one instance, prosecutors alleged Phillips asked a mother to
sign her dead son's name on a beneficiary form a few days after the funeral.