Sixty-eight-year-old Theodore Bathurst pleaded guilty to theft on Monday in Delaware County court. He says he took more than $78,000 held in escrow for clients who had prepaid burial expenses.
His attorney, W. David Breen, says Bathurst was having problems with tax and bank debts.
Bathurst had been mayor of Glenolden but resigned in August after the charges came to light. He had served in the position since 1994.
Bathurst sold the funeral home in 2007. The current owner says she discovered money was missing when she tried to access the escrow account of a client in March 2008.
Bathurst is scheduled for sentencing in the spring.
