Beloved Connecticut Priest Accused of Stealing $1 Million from Parish

June 22, 2010— -- A Connecticut priest with a reputation of caring for the poor has shocked his parishioners after being accused of faking a terminal illness to cover up the alleged theft of $1 million from his diocese.

The Rev. Kevin Gray, a 26-year veteran of the Hartford Catholic Diocese, is being investigated by the Waterbury, Conn., police department for allegedly taking money over a seven-year period from a savings fund established for the Sacred Heart parish, money that was to be used for building renovations and church debt, according to the police.

"It's hard for all of us to hear and believe this news," the Rev. John Gatzak, spokesman for the Hartford Archdiocese told ABC News today.

According to Gatzak, the archdiocese became suspicious over the past year as they asked Gray to submit several years' worth of annual financial reviews from his parish.

Gray allegedly said he was unable to complete the reviews because of a serious terminal illness he was battling and asked for more time. Gatzak said that although they gave Gray some leeway and extra time to submit his reports, they began to look at his parish financial records and say they made some troubling discoveries.

"It's been determined over the past seven years that annual reports were not forthcoming, and although every church has to have a financial counsel to make sure funds are used properly, Father Gray never had a financial counsel at Sacred Heart, we don't know how he didn't," Gatzak said.

Gatzak, 64, said the news has been ever more painful for the parish and it's parishioners because of the fact that they believed Gray was battling a serious illness, an illness they now believe may have simply been a lie to try and give the priest more time to allegedly cover up the lost funds.