Myrtle Beach man pleads to 55 counts of embezzlement

STATESVILLE, N.C.—The former director of the Mooresville Christian Mission apologized after entering an Alford plea to more than 55 counts of embezzling more than $100,000 from the organization.

Michael Ray Barrier, 62, who now lives in Myrtle Beach entered the plea, in which the defendant doesn’t admit guilt but acknowledges there is evidence of guilt, Thursday in Iredell County Superior Court.

Barrier was director of the Christian mission, which served those living near or below the poverty line with food, clothing and financial assistance for utility bills and medicine, for more than 15 years.

The embezzlement, Iredell County Assistant District Attorney Alan Martin said, occurred during a period of more than four years — from January 2001 to September 2005.

Barrier will serve active terms of five to six months in jail and then be on probation for several years.

Martin said during the more than four-year period Barrier paid himself twice his allotted salary, and also paid credit card bills, his mortgage and other bills from the mission’s account.

Barrier left his position in September 2005 due to health problems. Shortly thereafter, the money losses were discovered and reported to Mooresville police, Martin said.

Martin said the state agreed to the plea and left sentencing up to the discretion of Judge John Holshouser.

However, Martin did urge Holshouser to sentence Barrier to an active prison term.

“He stole from churches, he stole from poor people, he stole from hungry people,“ he said. Martin added that Barrier stole from the community a sense of trust in the organization as a whole.

Valarie Chamberlin, the current director of the Christian Mission, said she and her board of directors are saddened by what happened, but felt compassion for Barrier.

“Every day we work with people who made bad decisions out of desperation. We believe it was the case here,“ she said. “Nobody would be served by jail time.“

Mark Childers, Barrier’s attorney, told Holshouser this was an aberration in an otherwise exemplary life led by Barrier.

He is a retired Air Force tech sergeant and served in the Air Force’s version of the military police.

After retiring and moving to Mooresville, he took on the role of director of the Christian mission and took it from being housed in “a glorified tool shed” to a new facility, Childers said.

His brother, the Rev. Gregory Barrier, said he always looked up to his older brother.

Choking back tears, he talked about his brother’s decision to take on the role of leader of the Christian Mission.

“He told me that at this point in my life I want to do something to help other people,“ he said to the judge.

Barrier himself addressed Holshouser, calling his actions poor judgment, and said he didn’t want what happened to affect the ministry.

“I want people to continue to support the ministry and not lose faith in its goals and achievements,“ he said.

After taking a lunch break to ponder the letters of support and the case itself, the judge said he didn’t understand why Barrier did what he did.

“I was looking for some evidence of a mental breakdown ... This was so out of character,“ he said.

Holshouser did tell Barrier what he did is a breach of trust. “It’s a sacred breach,“ he said.

Holshouser grouped Barrier’s 57 charges into nine classes of six counts each, and one of three counts each.

He sentenced Barrier to an active term of five to six months each on two counts and probation on the remaining counts. Barrier was ordered to pay $102,000 in restitution as well as $2,500 in fines.

Childers told Holshouser that Barrier was prepared to begin making restitution right away, showing the judge a $10,000 cashier’s check.

He said Barrier will pay an additional $20,000 within a month.

Childers said he hopes what Barrier did during a four-year period doesn’t erase the good he did in Mooresville for more than 15 years.

“The legacy of Mr. Barrier’s good works will be tainted, and he will have to bear that burden,“ he said.