Reverend Father used $650K Donations for Sick People in Lebanon to Fund Lavish Lifestyle

A Catholic Reverend father, Pawel Bielecki, known as "Father Paul," has been exposed by US authorities for allegedly misappropriating over $650,000 in donations meant for medical clinics in Lebanon.

Instead of funding these clinics, Bielecki reportedly spent the money on a lavish lifestyle that included extravagant meals, trips to the Hamptons, and plastic surgery.

Bielecki claimed to run medical facilities in war-torn Lebanon, but investigations revealed he was living in Manhattan, New York.

He allegedly exploited the 2020 Beirut explosion to gather more donations, despite not having left the US between December 2019 and April 2022.

“Bielecki exploited his position as a friar to gain the trust of victims across the country and steal hundreds of thousands of dollars from them,” said Damian Williams, US Attorney for the Southern District of New York.

The clergyman was arrested on August 17 on charges of wire and mail fraud. For eight years, the priest allegedly preyed on compassionate members of his flock, soliciting donations on local radio shows and crowdfunding websites for non-existent Lebanese hospitals and ambulances.

Authorities said he even used the horrific August 4, 2020 chemical explosion in Beirut, which killed 218 people, to fill his wallet, claiming he was hurt in the attack.

However, prosecutors confirmed he wasn’t even there and “made several purchases at coffee shops, restaurants, and other businesses” in Manhattan on the day of the disaster.

Between December 2017 and February 2024, Bielecki withdrew almost $50,000 in cash from his bank accounts and transferred more than $600,000 to two credit card companies to pay for personal expenses, including $334 per month for a luxe gym membership, forays to the Hamptons, and “numerous meals at high-end restaurants.”

He also allegedly spent at least $15,000 on liposuction surgery. At different times, Bielecki claimed to be a surgeon or a United Nations researcher, using multiple aliases, including “Dr. Phaakon Sonderburg-Glucksburg.”

In September, he legally changed his name to “Paul HRH Saxe-Coburg-Gotha” with “HRH” standing for “His Royal Highness.”

John Abi-Habib, a member of the Salaam Club of New York and an honorary consul of Lebanon, expressed his shock upon hearing of the arrest. “No way, oh wow!

That’s scary man, that’s not right. Anyone that tries to use good people and hardworking people... and then not use [the donations properly]? It hurts. It hurts a lot.”

The Polish-born Bielecki entered the order of Capuchin Franciscans in Krakow in 1994, ironically taking a vow of poverty, which required him to renounce material things and not hold any property or bank accounts. He was ordained a priest in 2001.