A PRIEST was behind bars last night (Tuesday) for stealing nearly £100,000 from church funds whilst in the grip of an online gambling problem.

Father Graeme Bell, 41, was parish priest at Our Lady Star of the Sea church, known locally as St Mary’s, in Saltcoats, North Ayrshire.

He embezzled the money between March and May 2015 and used the cash to play online roulette whilst “paralysed” by his gambling addiction, Kilmarnock Sheriff Court heard.

Last month Father Bell pleaded guilty to embezzling £96,000 from the parish and sentence was deferred for him to be assessed by social workers on the most appropriate way of dealing with him.

When he returned to the dock at Kilmarnock Sheriff Court yesterday to learn his fate, defence solicitor Gerard Brown asked for leniency for his client.

He said the first offender “is and was a good man” who has, “in a vocation, given his life to God, to the church and to his Parishioners.”

He added: “And, indeed, from some of the letters of support, to society in general and individuals in general, no matter their denomination or background.”

He added the shamed priest was also a “responsible, kind and caring” individual whose “anxiety and depression reached a stage where he was not behaving as a law abiding individual.”

And he said years of overseeing the life-changing and emotional moments of his congregation had taken their toll on him.

The lawyer explained: “This is a man who has taken responsibility for other people’s life changing moments - he has conducted marriages, baptisms and funerals.

“He has listened and shared with individual Parishioners and the suffering they’ve had through the traumas in their lives and he’s found himself he’s put himself in to a situation equally so.”

And the lawyer said that £97,500 - £1,500 more than the £96,000 Father Bell stole - was available to the church due to a combination of a £30,000 payout from a fidelity insurance policy, £42,500 in donations from Father Bell’s friends and family and £25,000 he returned himself.

He asked Sheriff Alistair Watson to spare Father Bell jail, saying he could “treat this case as exceptional and depart from a period of imprisonment.”

But Sheriff Watson ruled there was only one way he could deal with the priest, who had sat stonefaced in the dock, and jailed him for 10 months.

Bell showed no emotion as he was told his sentence was being reduced from 15 months but his hands trembled as a female custody officer placed handcuffs on his wrist before leading him away to begin his sentence.

As he jailed Father Bell, Sheriff Watson said: “This is a very significant breach of trust and a substantial amount of funds.

“All the difficulties you have did not remove your free will - as an intelligent being you deliberately undertook the actions you undertook. The money of the church would’ve been allocated to charity and good causes.

“I accept your very genuine expressions of shame, remorse and genuine attempt to out matters right as best you can.

“I can take an exceptionally low starting point for the sentence but I feel I would be failing in my duty if I did not impose custody.”

The sheriff also urged Father Bell, who the court heard regularly attends Gambler’s Anonymous, to continue to seek help for his gambling when he is released from custody.

Father Bell did not turn to look at a large group of friends and family, including his brother, who had come to court to show their support as he was led away to begin his sentence.

A spokesperson for the Diocese of Galloway said: “This is a sad day for the Diocese as Father Graeme Bell is sentenced. However, given amounts involved it is not surprising that he has received a custodial sentence and we hope that in prison he will continue to receive the support that he needs and which the Diocese has offered him over the past year.

“This has been a very difficult year for the parishioners of St Mary’s Saltcoats.

“Now that the case has concluded, Bishop Nolan will be meeting with the Parish Council of St Mary’s on Thursday evening (16 June) and will celebrate Mass in the parish on the weekend of July 8 and 9. Bishop Nolan wishes to express his gratitude to the parishioners of St Mary’s and St John’s in Stevenston, for their patience and fortitude during these very difficult months and to Canon Martin Poland for looking after St Mary’s Saltcoats.

“When Fr Bell first revealed to the Diocese that he had misused parish funds for gambling, he was removed from his post and the police were informed. Contrary to some speculation, he had not been under investigation for financial irregularities prior to that, nor were the monies involved from any other funds than from the parish.

“With the conclusion of the court case, a Church Tribunal will now investigate Fr Bell’s conduct. Since Fr Bell used to work at the Tribunal in Scotland, Bishop Nolan will ask the Holy See to appoint a Tribunal in England or Ireland to carry out this investigation.

“The sentence that Fr Bell faces and the publicity his conduct and failings have received will be a challenge to him. We pray, that with God’s help, this low point in his life may become a time of personal and spiritual renewal.”