Burnsville Minister Accused of Swindling Church Out of Thousands

A former youth minister at a Burnsville church has been charged with swindling the church out of more than $8,000 between August and December last year.

John Glenn Mertes, 40, is charged with theft by swindle, a felony with a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $20,000 fine.

According to the criminal complaint, an administrator and an accountant at Mary, Mother of the Church contacted Burnsville police in January to report a possible theft. 

Church employees told police that a $500 check acquired at a church fundraiser in November 2011 hadn’t been included in deposits from the event. Employees told police that they discovered that Mertes, who worked as a youth minister and had supervised the fundraiser, had endorsed the check and deposited it into his personal bank account.

Church employees told police they were aware that Mertes had been having financial difficulties, according to the complaint.

Investigators subsequently confirmed that the endorsement on the back of the $500 check was in Mertes’ handwriting, the complaint says. Authorities also sought a search warrant for Mertes’ bank records and determined that about 40 checks written to the church, totaling more than $8,000, had been deposited into Mertes’ account between August and December.

Police met with Mertes on Feb. 23 and asked him about the checks. He told investigators that there was no reason for any money from fundraisers  to be in his personal bank accounts, and denied that he had ever deposited any checks into those accounts, according to the complaint.

Investigators showed Mertes a spreadsheet and asked him again about the 40 checks. Mertes “looked down at the table and his eyes became watery,” the complaint says. Mertes admitted that he had been under financial stress, that the records appeared to be accurate and that none of the money had ever been returned to the church, according to the complaint.

On March 14, investigators spoke to Mertes’ wife, whose name was also listed on the bank accounts. She told police that Mertes handled all the household finances and was responsible for all the deposits, according to the complaint.

Mertes is free on a $5,000 bond.  An omnibus hearing in his case is scheduled July 9 in Dakota County District Court in Hastings.