A Texas pastor has been sentenced to 35 years in prison after a jury convicted him of stealing three churches valued at more than $800,000.
Whitney Foster, 56, the pastor at the True Foundation nondenominational church in Dallas, received the sentence after being convicted of theft involving three local churches, according to Dallas County prosecutors.
Foster, who led a small congregation without a physical meeting place, was accused of stealing real estate from three local churches. Prosecutors said he filed fraudulent property deeds, listing a fake pastor or other church officials from the congregations he targeted.
On the deed documents, Foster listed his church as the grantee in his own name. The total value of the three properties exceeded $800,000, prosecutors said.
The three churches affected were the First Christian Church in Lancaster, Texas, Canada Drive Christian Church, and Church at Ninevah. Two of these properties are still listed in Foster’s name.
Prosecutors also noted that Foster’s congregation continues to meet at one of the properties, while the third property remains entangled in legal complications due to his actions.
“Stealing real estate is an incredibly serious and damaging crime,” stated John Creuzot, Dallas County criminal district attorney. “It’s worse than the theft of someone’s vehicle or other possessions. When someone steals property, we must hold them accountable because they are hurting people.”
The jury was presented with evidence of seven additional fraudulent acts beyond the three for which Foster was convicted. Prosecutors also announced that Foster had previous convictions for identity theft and arson.
In 2021, the pastor of the Lancaster, Texas, church discovered that the congregation no longer owned their building after it had been deeded to another person for $10, according to a Dallas television station.
The property, valued at $700,000 at the time, was transferred after someone falsely claiming to be the chairman of the church deeded it over to a non-church member for $10.
At the time, Foster told the television station that he believed the church building was vacant.
“You can acquire a property for $10 with nonprofits,” Foster explained to the local news station. “The church is community property. … It wasn’t Whitney buying it. Our church was getting it. I was planning to open a church there.”
