Crime & Safety

Inver Grove Heights Pastor Accused of Stealing from Church

Leon Piepenbrink, 51, is accused of stealing $62,500 from the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Church Synod.

Afraid for his life, Leon Piepenbrink allegedly told his superiors that he needed bulletproof glass and a gun to defend himself from violent members of the Hmong community.

But police say his claims weren’t true, and that Piepenbrink himself — an Inver Grove Heights pastor working with the Hmong community — was spinning an elaborate tale to conceal the theft of $62,500 from the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Church Synod (WELS).

Piepenbrink, 51, was charged with seven counts of theft by swindle in an amended criminal complaint filed on Thursday by the Dakota County Attorney’s office. If convicted on a single theft by swindle charge, he could face a maximum of 10 years in prison and $20,000 in fines.

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According to the complaint, WELS officials grew suspicious of Piepenbrink and contacted Inver Grove Heights police after the pastor requested reimbursement for security systems, bulletproof glass and a gun — all for self-defense.

Piepenbrink allegedly told his superiors that members of the Hmong community had threatened him, and that he had been driving near Hastings in 2010 when the occupants of another vehicle shot at him.

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But WELS officials couldn’t find the police reports that Piepenbrink claimed he filed. The synod also checked with the businesses from which Piepenbrink claimed to have purchased personal protection equipment, and found that many of his claimed expenditures were fabricated, the complaint said.

Officials confronted Piepenbrink about his claims, at which point the pastor allegedly admitted he had falsified documents and stolen money from the synod.

Because of his position, police say Piepenbrink had access to two separate synod funds. The thefts took place over a three-year span, beginning in May 2007 and ending in June 2010, police said.

The Star Tribune reports that Piepenbrink’s position at the church was terminated in Aug. 2010.  According to his Facebook page, Piepenbrink graduated from Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary in 1986.

Piepenbrink has not yet been booked into Dakota County Jail. His first court appearance is scheduled for May 23.


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