The following is an update of a story California Catholic Daily ran on March 21, “Operator of popular Catholic website facing charges of tax evasion“:
A jury in California convicted the man who owns the website catholic.org of tax evasion on Wednesday.
Michael Galloway owned and operated the site, which went by Catholic Online, and was accused of using money raised for charities to cover his business and personal expenses.
The website is one of the oldest on the Catholic internet, and hosts links to news, prayers, and other features.
“Mr. Galloway operated Catholic Online which accepted donations for victims of the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami and 2005 Hurricane Katrina,” said IRS agent Michael T. Batdorf in a press release. “Mr. Galloway used the funds for personal and business expenses; making those donations taxable income.”
Galloway could face years in prison and a $100,000 fine in his tax evasion case. He will be sentenced on June 18.
Full story at Crux.
While Mr. Galloway is entitled to a just wage for his fundraising, using contributions to pay personal expenses is a crime against both the donors and the beneficiaries. Please update the story when the sentance is delivered in June.