Catholic Bishop Emanuel Shaleta Pleads Not Guilty in El Cajon, California, Embezzlement Case

Emanuel Shaleta, the Chaldean Catholic bishop of San Diego, was arrested on embezzlement and money laundering charges in March 2025. He has not been convicted, and he has pleaded not guilty. Pope Leo XIV later accepted his resignation, which the Vatican announced on a Tuesday. The Vatican cited the bishop’s request to step down under the code of canon law for Eastern Rite churches.

According to the San Diego County Sheriff’s office, Shaleta was detained at San Diego International Airport on March 5 while attempting to leave the country. One report describes him as the bishop of the Chaldean Catholic Eparchy of Saint Peter the Apostle of San Diego. Reports differ on the number of charges. One says he faces 17 felony counts. Another, citing the Sheriff’s Office, says he faces eight counts of embezzlement, eight counts of money laundering, and an aggravating charge of a white-collar felony. At his arraignment in El Cajon, he pleaded not guilty to 17 felony charges, according to the first report.

The reports also differ on his age. One gives it as 69 and says he was ordained a priest in 1984 and had served in San Diego since 2017. Another gives it as 60.

The case concerns funds tied to the church. Prosecutor Joel Madero said the allegations are connected to missing rental payments from a tenant of the church’s social hall. Shaleta is accused of embezzling $270,000 from St. Peter Chaldean Catholic Cathedral, according to the first report. The second report names the parish as the Saint Peter Caldean Church in the unincorporated area of El Cajon. It says a church representative gave investigators a statement and documents suggesting possible financial irregularities the previous August. The Sheriff’s office determined there were indications of embezzlement and transferred the case to its financial crimes unit. Where rent collected does not match rent recorded, accurate accounting is the expected standard, a principle that rests on honest dealing (Proverbs 11:1).

The investigation was led by the Sheriff’s Fraud Unit, which analyzed alleged financial irregularities tied to church resources. The second report says the church’s internal investigation began after The Pillar, a Catholic media outlet, published a report saying Shaleta had diverted money from the rental of a church-owned property. A preliminary analysis indicated that at least $427,000 was missing, and the total could approach $1 million. These figures are preliminary and have not been established in court. They differ from the $270,000 figure in the first report.

At the bail hearing, the judge set bail at $125,000. Prosecutors argued that Shaleta was a flight risk. The first report says the Vatican accepted his resignation after his arrest.

The second report also cites a private investigator’s report that The Pillar referred to. According to that account, Shaleta had been seen frequenting the