Ga. Preacher Found Guilty in Church Scam

ATLANTA, Feb. 7 -- A preacher was convicted Monday of stealing nearly $9 million from hundreds of small black churches across the country that were promised hundreds of thousands of dollars in exchange for small investments.

Abraham Kennard was found guilty in U.S. District Court in Rome, Ga., of all 116 counts, including mail fraud and tax evasion. Prosecutors said he ran a pyramid scheme largely meant to take advantage of a tight network of black preachers.

"I know you can see clearly it was a scheme, all right. And for some 1,600 churches, it was a nightmare," prosecutor David McClernan told jurors in his closing argument last week.

Kennard, 46, of Wildwood, Ga., said he is not guilty of anything and made no apologies for a life of nice cars and fancy suits.

"It's not a law against riding in a Cadillac if you don't want to ride in a Volkswagen," Kennard, who represented himself, said in his opening remarks. Michael Trost, who served as Kennard's standby counsel, said he thinks Kennard intended to help the churches.

Prosecutors said Kennard claimed his company was developing Christian resorts around the country. He told preachers that for a fee of a few thousand dollars, their churches could be "members" of his company. In return, he promised that in time the churches would get a grant or a forgivable loan of up to $500,000.

Kennard's brother, LaBoyce, was also found guilty Monday of conspiracy to commit money laundering. Prosecutors said he accepted more than $360,000 from his brother.