South Yorkshire 'Runaway' Vicar Jailed
50 year old Simon Reynolds has been sentenced for defrauding his parish of over £16,000.
A vicar who stole thousands of pounds from a church in Barnsley before going on the run has been jailed.
Simon Reynolds, who worked at the All Saints Church in Darton, sparked a Europe-wide search when he ran off to Germany.
He later handed himself in.
The 50 year old was found guilty by a jury at Sheffield Crown Court of four counts of theft in his absence after he went out for lunch and didn't come back.
He's been jailed for 32 months for defrauding his parish of over £16,000.
The money was meant to be for weddings, funerals and churchyard memorials.
Caroline Tubb, Senior Crown Prosecutor, CPS Yorkshire and Humberside said:
"It is hard to imagine a more deplorable and flagrant breach of trust than a vicar stealing money from his own parishioners.
"The offences he has committed are of an enormous significance considering the position of trust that Reynolds held within his community.
"The qualities one would most associate with his position -honesty, trust and integrity have been completely abandoned in an attempt to fund his lifestyle.
"These offences were further compounded when he absconded after his trial, triggering an extensive manhunt. The sentence handed down today sends a clear message that no-one is above the law, and we will prosecute all such cases robustly."