Texas man indicted for church-related fraud

A resident of Arlington, Texas, with ties to several local churches was indicted for an alleged defrauding scheme tied to his church-related activities.

Richard Reinaldo Garcia was indicted in Fort Worth on June 2, according to a U.S. Attorney’s Office release published on Tuesday. The federal grand jury convicted the 53-year-old of one count of wire fraud conspiracy, two counts of wire fraud, and one count of aggravated identity theft.

What is he accused of doing? The indictment alleges that from August 2021 through April 2025, Garcia and others made false material misstatements based in part on the promise of significant profits for his victims. Among other things, the misstatements encouraged the victims to donate toward “church flipping” real estate projects and “joint venture” agreements to host Christian music concerts and other church programs. Garcia then allegedly used those donated funds for his own personal and business expenses.

Garcia controlled several bank accounts with church-related names, such as Ministerio Gracia, Iglesia Gracia de Texas, Gracia Church of Texas, and Pesar de Todo, LLC, according to the indictment. Over the years, Garcia convinced over 50 victims across the U.S. to donate, accumulating over $3.2 million for Garcia, the indictment said.

What comes next? The trial is scheduled to begin on Oct. 13 in Fort Worth, with Garcia facing up to 20 years in federal prison for each count of wire fraud and wire fraud conspiracy, in addition to a mandatory sentence of two years for the aggravated identity theft count.