OAK HARBOR, Wash. — A pastor who stole Oso slide donations was sentenced to 18 months in prison.
Island County Superior Court Judge Alan Hancock sentenced pastor Gary Ray to 18 months in prison for a series of swindles totaling over $152,000.
The funds were stolen from Oso families, collection plates, and his own church congregations in Snohomish and Island counties.
Hancock said the court was appalled by Ray’s shameful fraud and theft, his betrayal and abuse of trust.
Ray, 57, worked at the Oso Community Chapel when the landslide struck. The landslide killed 43 people and left behind a path of devastation. In total, prosecutors say Ray pocketed $40,000 donated to victims.
The Highway 530 landslide swallowed a square mile and an entire neighborhood along the North Fork Stillaguamish River, with no warning, in March 2014.
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