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The former Oxnard Church pastor has admitted to stealing $200,000 from the place of worship — the congregation founder was on his deathbed, but spent money on flights, phone calls and new Tennessee homes, officials said.
Curtis Frank Lemons, 68, was sentenced to two years in state prison on Friday for diverting funds from Oxnard’s new Progressive Christian Baptist Church, according to the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office.
In December 2020, Lemons issued a cashier’s check for $200,000 from a church-affiliated bank account, authorities said. He then moved from Camarillo to Atka, Tennessee, where he spent the stolen funds between airline tickets, dental work, new cars, new cell phones and April 2021, prosecutors said.
Lemons carried out his plans, and the close Baptist community was fighting both the final months of founder Rev. Jesse James Taylor’s life and the challenge of delivering remote prayers between the pandemic’s senior Ventura County vice-chairman. Atty. Howard Weiss told the Times.
Taylor used the money he made from Oxnard real estate to support the church and help build a worship community for his friends and family, Wise said. The majority of the $200,000 stolen came from the pastor’s own pocket.
“Mr. Lemons stole from a vulnerable victim at a time of weakness,” Wise said in a statement. “When this happened, the church patriarch was almost dying… Mr. Lemons made a horrifying decision, but accepted responsibility for his important theft.”
Lovingly known as “Uncle Pastor,” Taylor founded a church in 1963 with his wife, Lula del Taylor, according to his obituary. He passed away in August 2021 at the age of 87.
The Oxnard Police Department investigated theft after being reported by church members. Lemons initially told police he gave money to the charity, but financial records later revealed he spent money on personal expenses, Wise said.
In April, Lemons pleaded guilty to two counts of grand theft and one money laundering.
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