A former senior administrator for a private, religious nonprofit school in Montgomery County faces multiple felony charges related to the theft of more than $579,000.
Katherine Paprocka, 36, of Paoli, Pennsylvania, was arrested Tuesday on 29 felony counts and other charges related to the theft from the now closed Penn Christian Academy in East Norriton.
Prosecutors claim Paprocka, who was employed at the school from July 2020 to December 2021, used the half million dollars to fund trips to London, New York and Florida, among other things.
The Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office said their investigation started when police were notified by a school donor about possible embezzlement and co-mingling of funds by Paprocka.
Get Philly local news, weather forecasts, sports and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC Philadelphia newsletters.
The donor gave police documents, from a forensic account she hired, showing funding irregularities. According to prosecutors, they showed there were regular payments to a crowdfunding platform, as well as three other small business lenders that help organizations that don’t quality for traditional bank financing.
Loans with all four lenders were signed by Paprocka, the DA said, and listed her as the “Senior Administrator and Owner” or “Executive Director and Owner” of Penn Christian Academy, but as a nonprofit educational institution, Penn Christian does not have ownership.
Additionally, information given to East Norriton Police showed $62,974.79 had been paid to Paprocka’s American Express credit card. The district attorney’s office said when the school’s board requested information about those expenses, Paprocka only submitted approximately $12,000 in school-related expenses.
Local
Breaking news and the stories that matter to your neighborhood.
An extensive investigation by the East Norriton Police and Montgomery County Detective Bureau revealed Paprocka defrauded Penn Christian Academy, its employees and bill companies of $579,651.
“The defendant committed the fraudulent activities by assuming the identities/forging the signatures of multiple employees and volunteers of PCA/EN, including obtaining credit cards in the names of several PCA/EN employees without their knowledge or consent,” a release from the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office reads.
Prosecutors said Paprocka used the stolen money for family vacations and activities including rental property payments, car rentals, clothing purchases, restaurant meals, Amazon purchases and payments for in-vitro fertilization medical treatments.
“This is a reminder that every non-profit organization needs to have checks on any employee who has access to its funds so more than one person has control and oversight of the monetary activity,” District Attorney Kevin Steele said. “It’s the only way to be assured the organization’s money is safe.”
Paprocka’s bail was set at $99,000 cash. She was jailed at the Montgomery County Correctional Facility.
The lights had been off at Penn Christian Academy since Paprocka was arrested. Police say it's because she used the stolen funds for her own lifestyle rather than on the school's bills.
The school staff stopped receiving paychecks this time last year, but continued to work for the kids. The school was able to stay open because PECO kept the power on until now.
The school community hopes to one day welcome students back.
NBC10 reached out to Paprocka's lawyers, but they declined to comment.