Episcopal priest Bobby Smith pleads guilty to financial crimes
The Rev. Bobby Smith, a priest canonically resident in the Diocese of Chicago, pleaded guilty on February 19, 2026 to federal wire fraud charges. The move is the culmination of an investigation into allegations that Smith embezzled from Saint Francis Ministries, a non-profit foster care agency, where Smith served as executive director from 2014 to 2020.
As a result of the plea, Title IV clergy disciplinary charges will commence against Smith, likely resulting in him being removed from ministry,
While Anglican Watch endorses the decision to move forward with disciplinary charges, we note that Bishop Clark talks out both sides of her mouth when it comes to these issues. For example, the Diocese of Chicago went to court to defend allegations that former assisting bishop Chilton Knudsen failed to report child sex abuse to law enforcement under Bishop Frank Griswold; she improbably claimed that she vividly recalled a phone conversation in which she did so, but couldn’t remember with whom she spoke.
Relatedly, Clark continues to ignore requests that she address the Rev. Will Bouvel’s perjury against a parishioner who objected to his ordination on the basis of Bouvel’s sexual orientation. While we promote the full inclusion of the LGBTQ+ community into the life of the church, the ends don’t justify the means, and perjury by a priest is never acceptable. Thus, we believe that Bouvel needs to be removed from ministry and financial restitution made to the victim of Bouvel’s perjury. And, for the record, there is ample evidence that Bouvel knew what he was doing was illegal, including the abrupt resignation of his attorney, who appears to have refused to proffer fabricated evidence.
In short, it is time for Paula Clark to clean up her act, versus only addressing the “low-hanging fruit” of clergy misconduct in her diocese.
The text of Clark’s announcement about Smith follows.
February 19, 2026
Dear People of God in the Diocese of Chicago,
I am writing to let you know that earlier today the Rev. Robert (Bobby) Smith, a priest of our diocese, pled guilty to a federal charge of wire fraud in the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas. This plea is a result of an indictment filed on November 19, 2022, by the U.S. Attorney for the District of Kansas. The charges against the Rev. Smith concerned his employment as the Chief Executive Officer of Saint Francis Ministries, a nonprofit foster care agency in Salina, Kansas, between 2014 and 2020. While he remained canonically resident in the Diocese of Chicago, Smith had been living and working in Kansas over that time period.
Please know that I take very seriously all accusations of clergy misconduct. The issues concerning Saint Francis Ministries first came to the diocese’s attention in 2020, prior to the indictment, and I have been monitoring the situation in consultation with members of the Disciplinary Board throughout. I’m grateful for the assistance of Bishop Doug Sparks of the Diocese of Northern Indiana, who oversaw the disciplinary process while the Diocese of Chicago was in transition. Smith was suspended from ministry in 2021, during the initial misconduct investigation, and again in 2022, following the indictment.
With today’s legal action, our churchwide disciplinary process, under Title IV of the Canons of the Episcopal Church will now proceed in view of Smith’s guilty plea. I ask you to please pray for the Rev. Smith, his family, and all who are affected by this situation.
Faithfully,
Bishop Paula Clark
Why doesn’t the bishop ask for prayers for the children, families and workers at the foster care agency this guy embezzled from first, instead of praying for Bobby and his family?
When I pray for folks who have perpetrated financial or other crimes, I pray for the victims of those crimes first and then for the perpetrators and their families. Bobby isn’t a victim of a tragedy or a “situation”—he’s a criminal and in my prayers, the kids, families and workers will come before Bobby and his family. Bobby and his family will be in my prayers, but they are not the primary focus of my heart’s response to this. Why do bishops so often get that wrong?
“Smith led the foster care organization from 2014 to 2020, where the Episcopal priest was known as Father Bobby. Federal authorities gathered evidence that Smith and William Whymark, who provided IT services, engaged in a scheme to bilk the organization of more than $4.7 million through inflated invoices. Smith also used the organization’s credit card for family travels, fine clothes, meals at five-star restaurants and cash withdrawals.”
“Saint Francis, a faith-based nonprofit, was the state’s largest foster care contractor, serving 3,100 children and 600 homes, when Smith resigned in November 2020. The organization nearly became insolvent under Smith’s management, which included severely underbidding a foster care contract in Nebraska.”
– From an article published by The Kansas Reflector
https://kansasreflector.com/2026/02/19/former-kansas-foster-care-leader-pleads-guilty-to-wire-fraud-admits-personal-charges/
I have had serious problems with my Rector at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Winston-Salem. He sends e-mails telling me I will be arrested if I attend church. He has blocked my cell phone and I cannot access morning prayer. When he was first hired he brought in a woman from another church to work with stewardship. She was finally left go. I was told she had personnel issues: while doing endowments, I was slandered. I also have been slandered by the Rector: on paper and to my face. He continues to serve Communion but I have not had Communion in my church since November 2024.
There is a book by Darrel Puls called: Let Us Prey: The Plague of Narcissistic Pastors and What We Can Do About It. It was very clarifying for me. I hope you will be able to find solace, real spiritual food and genuine Christian community at another parish in your area. It is very difficult to return to a parish when a priest is behaving in the ways you describe. You will be in my thoughts and prayers. I decided to leave the Episcopal Church for the Society of Friends. There are still healthy Episcopal congregations out there. I hope you’re able to find a healthier spiritual community.
Definitely time to move on. I can’t imagine any priest barring a parishioner from communion simply due to personality conflict, disagreements, etc, but here we are. Sounds like that person is threatened by Ms Sites or is perhaps a narcissist, sociopath or all the above. I previously attended a smaller semi-rural parish when living in Maryland and the priest was a wonderful and caring person. There are good parishes out there.