Former Philadelphia Archdiocese CFO sentenced in embezzling case

Anita Guzzardi, a 42-year-old South Philadelphia native was sentenced to two to seven years in prison for embezzling over $900,000 from the Archdiocese of Philadelphia’s bank accounts.

The former chief financial officer drew 330 checks from the church’s treasury over a span of about seven years.

Guzzardi was arrested and officially charged back in March.

According to Philly.com, Guzzardi was a gambling addict and compulsive shopper whose “spending binge” was motivated by greed and a love of nice things, like fresh cut flowers, trips for herself and family members, Ferragamo shoes, and thousands of dollars of cash advances at area casinos, drawn from American Express cards.

Guzzardi had been employed with the Archdiocese since 1989. She had just received a promotion from acting CFO that came with a salary bump netting her over $124,000 annually.

In addition to the jail time and seven years of probation thereafter, Guzzardi was ordered to pay $646,627 in restitution back to the Archdiocese.