The head priest of a Pittsburgh Episcopal church accused of stealing baseball cards from a Walmart has resigned.
The Right Rev. Ketlen Solak, the Episcopal bishop of Pittsburgh, announced she accepted the resignation of the Very Rev. Aidan Everett Smith, dean of Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Downtown Pittsburgh, in a letter to the Trinity community this weekend.
Economy police arrested Smith, 42, of Ambridge on Feb. 27. He was charged with retail theft and receiving stolen property, accused of stealing more than $1,000 worth of baseball cards from the borough’s Walmart store over five consecutive days beginning Feb. 23.
According to Solak’s letter, Smith had been placed on administrative leave in late January as the church looked into “whether Aidan improperly sold artifacts belonging to the cathedral through online platforms.” Church proceedings against him began Feb. 15.
While the charges related to Smith’s arrest for retail theft are separate from the church property allegations, the two matters will proceed as one case within the church, Solak wrote.
“Please continue to pray for Aidan, his family, and for everyone impacted by these events,” Solak’s letter says.
Solak said she, members of the executive committee and the Rev. Canon Mary Jane Ledgerwood will be in charge of the operations of the cathedral.
“Moving forward, I anticipate the life of the congregation to remain steady, taking time to breathe and heal. After such an interval, in three to four months, we will begin a process of discerning the best path forward,” Solak said in the letter.
Smith was released from the Beaver County Jail on $50,000 bail Feb. 28, according to court records. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for March 26.