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Police: Church admin spent almost $6K on Amazon

OVIEDO, Fla. — A CrossLife Church administrative assistant used a church credit card to make almost $6,000 worth of unauthorized purchases on Amazon.com and Amazon Digital over three years, the Oviedo Police Department said.

Darlene Kochanowski, who worked for the church for 14 years, was fired in June after she was recorded stealing food from the church multiple times, police said.

Investigators said she was later arrested on charges of grand theft after she made 136 unauthorized purchases.

Kochanowski said she bought the items to help her son, who was financially struggling, officials said.

Investigators said the items were delivered to her Geneva home and to the church. They said she would retrieve packages from the church's mailroom and deliver them to her son and daughter-in-law's Cocoa home.

Detectives said Kochanowski told them she bought the items because her son has young children and because he doesn't work due to post-traumatic stress disorder sustained from his military service.

Officials said she didn't want to see her family go without necessary household items and she wanted them to live comfortably.

They said she bought a $142 bread-making machine and related accessories in May and listed it as a farewell gift for a church employee, but it was shipped to her son's home.

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Kochanowski said she repaid the church the almost $6,000 she is accused of stealing. She was released from jail on bail and has a court hearing scheduled for next month.

The church provided Channel 9 the following statement:

"CrossLife Church was heartbroken to discover that over a period of several months, an employee had used a church credit card for personal purchases in escalating amounts. We felt obligated to report our findings to the authorities as a crime had been committed. At the appropriate time, we will recommend to the State Attorney’s Office that they forgo seeking a sentence that would include jail time; rather, mandate counseling and treatment to ensure she receives the help she needs."