Embezzling Church Treasurer Sentenced To Home Detention, Community Service

By Mike Perleberg Steve Brack. Photo by Franklin County Sheriff's Department. (Brookville, Ind.) – A former elected office holder in Franklin County has been sentenced a second time after pleading guilty to theft, but he’ll avoid jail time. Former Franklin County Auditor Steve Brack pleaded guilty to two counts of felony Theft last November for stealing money from the Brookville Kiwanis Club. Brack, who was the treasurer of the civic club at the time he took the funds, was sentenced to two years on probation. During the course of Indiana State Police’s investigation into the Kiwanis Club money theft, detectives also uncovered evidence that Brack had stolen more than $5,000 from Whitcomb United Methodist Church, for which he was previously a trustee. Because of his previous standing as an elected office in Franklin County, Brack’s case was bound to Union County court. He appeared there on Valentine’s Day to plead guilty to four more felony counts of Theft, The Brookville Democrat-American newspaper reports. The judge ordered Brack to serve up to nine months on home detention and 400 hours of community service. He must also repay $5,217.40 to the church. An Indiana State Police detective testified in court that the amount of restitution was likely only a fraction of what Brack stole. Thefts from the church’s coffers went back several years, but the statute of limitations prevented anything from being done about the older thefts. Brack may have also taken money raised from the church’s food tent at the Franklin County 4-H Fair. A member of the church said profits from the food tent went up 50 percent in the years after Brack was not allowed to handle the money. RELATED STORIES: Former County Auditor Gets Probation For Theft From Kiwanis Club Former County Auditor Hit With New Theft Charges New Franklin Co. Clerk Selected After Former Office Holder Resigns Much-Maligned Franklin County Auditor Resigns Paper: Franklin Co. Commissioner Gives Auditor Ultimatum Franklin County Auditor Charged With Theft