Inside the Case of a Youth Pastor Whose Mounting Debt Drove Him to a Shocking Breaking Point

Mar. 15, 2025

Photo:Johnson County Sheriff’s Office

Johnson County Sheriff’s Office

A former children’s pastor pleaded guilty to multiple charges after he stabbed his wife and children and then set his home on fire in an attempt to conceal his financial woes.

The horrifying incident took place in the early morning hours of Sept. 16, 2023, in Shawnee, Kan. Matthew Lee Richards was subsequently charged with five counts of attempted murder and one count of aggravated arson with risk of bodily harm.

On Tuesday, Richards, 41, entered guilty pleas to two counts of attempted first-degree murder in the case,according to KMBC.

At the time of the attempted murders, Richards was a children’s pastor at Crossroads Christian Church in Shawnee and also working at Christ Preparatory Academy in Lenexa, per theKansasCityStar.

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He reportedly claimed he’d planned to kill his family because they were due to be evicted that very same day, and he hadn’t told his wife about the dire financial straits they were in. He apparently believed his family would prefer to die than deal with eviction or debt.

According toFox News, Richards’s biography on the Crossroads Christian Church website — which has since been taken down — portrayed him as “a big kids [sic] who loves teaching little kids about Jesus.”

“He has been married to Stephanie since 2003 and they have 4 boys and 1 girl. He and his family have three rules: 1. Love God, 2. Love People, 3. Love Sports (especially the Jayhawks and Sporting KC),” the brief biography read, according to the outlet. “Matt and his family have been at Crossroads since August 2016 and look forward to many more years helping teach and reach those in the Shawnee area.”

Richards is scheduled to be sentenced on March 26, 2025.

If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or go tothehotline.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.

source: people.com