Photo: princessdlaf / E+ / Getty Images
An Alabama woman pleaded guilty to stealing $300,000 from a church that she used to work at. Kristen Marie Battocletti, 35, pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud involving the theft of money as part of a plea deal with prosecutors.
Authorities said that Battocletti used her job as an administrative assistant at St. Francis of Assisi University Parish to initiate over 600 unauthorized transactions between April 2023 and October 2023. She used the stolen money to purchase around $220,000 in TikTok digital coins that she gave out as gifts to content creators. She also used the money on personal expenses.
Battocletti faces up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of $250,000 when she is sentenced on November 26.
Battocletti and her lawyer refused to comment on the case.
"Hi, I don't want to talk," she told a reporter with WBRC in the parking lot after the hearing.