Suspended priest’s appeal to be heard

RICHMOND — The case of a suspended Roman Catholic priest convicted of embezzling from two rural parishes will be heard by the Virginia Court of Appeals.

The Rev. Rodney Rodis was found guilty in January of embezzling two Louisa County parishes of $432,000 while living a double life as a married man. He was sentenced to 13 years in prison, to be served after he completes a five-year federal sentence in North Carolina.

The clergyman’s lawyer, John R. Maus, said the appeals court will decide whether his federal mail fraud and money laundering convictions barred his prosecution on local charges.

According to court testimony, Rodis said he stole the money to help his family and others in his native Philippines.