Pretend Priest Does Pretty Good Impersonation

As we continue our tour of the Rittenhouse Grifters of Various Regions of Pennsylvania, please turn your attention to Wilkes-Barre, where a man from Scranton’s smaller cousin pretended to be a priest in order to steal groceries.

On Tuesday, police say Mr. Rush attempted to charge $97.76 of merchandise that included four 2-pound packages of shrimp, Tastykake krimpets and floral arrangements when he was stopped. In the past, police say he has left the store with energy drinks and even a carton of cigarettes along with his groceries.

Investigators say Mr. Rush bought Thanksgiving dinner necessities and numerous gift cards he claimed he’d donate to needy families, but kept most of them for himself.

Wait, are the cigarettes supposed to be uncharacteristic? From my experiences growing up, that seems pretty standard to me. The alleged fake priest, incidentally, did study for a month at a seminary.

Priest impostor collared [The Times-Tribune]