Chaldean Bishop arrested while trying to leave the U.S.
By Miriam Raftery
Photo by Miriam Raftery: Bishop Shaleta in May 2024 at opening of incubator business center for refugees and immigrants in El Cajon
March 5, 2026 (El Cajon) – San Diego County Sheriff’s deputies today arrested Chaldean Bishop Emmanuel Shaleta at the San Diego International Airport, where he was attempting to leave the country. He is charged with eight counts of embezzlement, eight counts of money laundering, and one count of aggravated white collar crime enhancement, according to a news release from the Sheriff’s department.
Shaleta is the top official at St. Peter the Apostle of San Diego Chaldean Church in El Cajon. The Sheriff’s Fraud Unit began investigating Shaleta last August, after a church representative contacted the Sheriff with documents showing potential embezzlement of church funds.
Shaleta has been transported to the San Diego Central Jail, where he is being held on $125,000 bail. A hold under Penal Code section 1275.1
An article in The Pillar, a Catholic media outlet, raised allegations of embezzlement by the Bishop as well as personal improprieties including visits to a Tijuana brothel, as ECM previously reported. According to The Pillar, documents indicate that rental payments from a church-owned social hall were paid directly to Bishop Shaleta, who later repaid the money with funds intended to help poor people. The Pillar’s investigative team reported that at least $427,000 is missing and possibly as much as a million dollars.
The Catholic news site indicated that Shaleta, when asked about the irregularities, said he distributed money directly to families in need and “reimbursed” the parish with funds from the charity account.
The Pillar further reported that a private investigator found Shaleta not only visited a Tijuana brothel, but also frequently visited the home of a woman he met when both worked at a church in Michigan, with whom he shares a bank account. According to The Pillar, the two had access to each other’s homes and were often together for long periods of time; the Bishop also reportedly had a close relationship with the woman’s children.
After the allegations surfaced, Bishop Shaleta addressed the congregation at St. Peter’s during mass on Feb. 23; video of his remarks appears on the Church’s YouTube page.
The Bishop stated, “I have never in my priestly life or episcopal life abused any penny of the church money. On the contrary I have done my best to preserve and manage the donations of the church properly.” He told the congregation that a donor from the community gave him money to give to the poor and did not ask for the transaction to be documented. He added that a member of the church’s financial committee then reported that undocumented money to the Vatican without informing Shaleta.
“The Vatican did an investigation about me without even notifying me.” Shaleta said. “I wrote a letter to the Vatican saying, ‘If you don’t trust me, I will resign from my work.” He called reports “a mean and vicious media campaign funded by very rich people against the Chaldean Church and its clergy.” A video of his full response can be seen on the Church’s YouTube page.
In a prepared statement, the Chaldean Patriarchate confirmed last week that some church members had filed complaints against Bishop Shaleta regarding “mishandling of certain diocesan funds and allegations of inappropriate relationships,” but added that information on social media was circulated “before all facts were fully clarified.”
The Vatican has also reportedly launched an investigation into the allegations against Bishop Shaleta.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Sheriff's Fraud Unit at (858) 285-6111. You can remain anonymous by calling San Diego County Crime Stoppers at (888) 580-8477.