$600,000 in Donations Stolen from Lakewood Church

John UpChurch | Updated: Mar 12, 2014

$600,000 in Donations Stolen from Lakewood Church

This past weekend, around $600,000 in cash and check donations was stolen from a safe at Lakewood Church in Houston. The church, pastored by Joel Osteen, issued an urgent warning to members to monitor their credit reports.

The donations came in during services on March 8 and 9, and an off duty police officer discovered the robbery on the morning of March 10. According to an email the church sent:

“It is important to note this was not an electronic data breach, but was instead limited to donations made in the services on March 8 and 9, 2014. You were not affected if you put your offering in a drop box, you gave online or through other electronic means, or you made a bookstore purchase. We are working with the police to fully investigate the incident. The funds were fully insured, and we are working with our insurance company to restore the stolen funds to the church.”

Houston police say that at least $200,000 of the stolen amount was cash. But so far, they have not reported any leads in the case.

Anyone who donated on those days and has questions is encouraged to call Lakewood's customer service line at 713-491-1506.

*Publication Date: 3/12/2014



$600,000 in Donations Stolen from Lakewood Church