TULSA, Okla. — Historic Vernon AME Church says former pastor Keith Rydell Mayes Sr. acted without the knowledge or authorization of church leadership when he diverted more than $504,000 while overseeing the finances of one of Greenwood’s most significant institutions.
Mayes, 63, pleaded guilty Sept. 14 to bank fraud and tax evasion, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Oklahoma. Federal prosecutors say he embezzled more than $504,000 from at least March 2022 through November 2025.
The African Methodist Episcopal Church’s 12th Episcopal District responded one day after Mayes’ guilty plea.
“The actions described in the federal case were not authorized by the congregation or the leadership of Vernon A.M.E. Church,” Bishop Silvester Scott Beaman said in a Sept. 15 statement.
The district said Mayes established and controlled the accounts and financial activities “without the knowledge or authorization of Vernon’s governing leadership.”
Mayes has not served as Vernon’s pastor since May. The district said the church remains operational under new pastoral leadership and has reviewed its financial practices.
Mayes controlled account receiving church donations
Mayes became Vernon’s senior pastor in October 2021. His responsibilities included overseeing church finances and managing donations, collections and disbursements.
Shortly after arriving at Vernon, Mayes opened a bank account titled “Administrative Expenses,” prosecutors said. He was the account’s only authorized signer and used his home address as its mailing address.
Mayes then solicited and deposited donations from church members and charitable organizations into the account, according to federal prosecutors.
One of the largest transactions involved a donor who wanted to contribute stock to Vernon.
After speaking with the donor and the donor’s financial adviser, Mayes opened a brokerage account in Vernon’s name. The donor transferred $365,000 in stock during 2021 and 2022, according to court documents cited by prosecutors.
Mayes liquidated the stock and deposited the proceeds into a church account. Prosecutors said he then embezzled most of those proceeds for his personal use.
Federal prosecutors said Mayes used embezzled money for gambling, personal expenses and firearms.
He also failed to report the money as income, leaving more than $205,000 in unpaid federal taxes.
Under his plea agreement, Mayes agreed to repay $504,313.88 for his embezzlement activities, including $205,765.60 owed to the IRS. He also agreed to forfeit firearms and ammunition purchased with the diverted money.
Vernon received major support during Tulsa Race Massacre centennial
The timing of Mayes’ arrival is significant because it followed a period of substantial fundraising and national attention for Vernon surrounding the 100th anniversary of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre.
Vernon was among the Greenwood institutions that attracted renewed attention as Tulsa prepared to commemorate the massacre centennial.
In April 2021, the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre Centennial Commission presented Vernon with $200,000 for renovations. The commission said the church had been included in its fundraising efforts because of its historical significance to Greenwood.
Vernon was then undergoing a roughly $1 million renovation project. The work included stained-glass restoration, bathrooms, a new roof, accessibility improvements and plans for a prayer wall.
Separately, the National Fund for Sacred Places says Vernon received $250,000 coinciding with the massacre centennial. The National Trust for Historic Preservation also reported that a $150,000 grant from its African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund helped fund Vernon’s stained-glass restoration alongside private donations.
Those documented contributions do not establish that Mayes had access to them or diverted them. Mayes did not become Vernon’s pastor until October 2021, months after the Centennial Commission’s $200,000 contribution.
However, the timeline underscores the amount of financial activity surrounding the historic church immediately before Mayes assumed responsibility for its finances.
The separate $365,000 stock donation identified in Mayes’ federal case also arrived during 2021 and 2022. Federal prosecutors have not publicly identified the donor or said whether the contribution was connected to the massacre centennial.
Church says financial safeguards have changed
In a statement sent to The Black Wall Street Times, the 12th Episcopal District said Vernon took steps to review its finances after its pastoral leadership changed.
“Upon the transition in pastoral leadership, the church took steps to review its financial practices, strengthen safeguards, and ensure appropriate accountability and oversight moving forward,” the district said.
The statement does not specify what safeguards existed while Mayes served as pastor. It also does not explain how the financial activity went undetected for several years or detail the new controls the church has implemented.
Those questions are particularly significant because Mayes had responsibility for church finances while controlling an account into which prosecutors say donations were deposited.
The Black Wall Street Times has asked the 12th Episcopal District what financial controls existed between 2022 and 2025, who was responsible for reviewing accounts and when church officials first discovered irregularities.
BWST has also asked whether the church will conduct or release an independent audit covering Mayes’ tenure and whether any money he diverted was donated specifically for historic preservation or in connection with Vernon’s role in the Tulsa Race Massacre centennial.
More than a century of history in Greenwood
The financial case strikes at an institution with a history extending well beyond its former pastor.
Vernon’s basement survived the destruction of Greenwood during the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre. The congregation subsequently raised money to rebuild, completing the church above the surviving basement in the 1920s. The National Fund for Sacred Places describes the basement as the only surviving Black-owned edifice intact from the massacre.
Vernon’s history of fundraising is itself intertwined with Greenwood’s recovery. A historic church ledger known as the “Book of Redemption” records donations from people who helped the congregation pay debts incurred rebuilding after the massacre.
The 12th Episcopal District invoked that history while urging the public not to define Vernon by Mayes’ actions.
“We ask that the actions of one individual not be allowed to define a church that has served Tulsa for more than 120 years,” the district said.
The district said Vernon remains operational and committed to “transparency, accountability, faithful stewardship” and its continuing ministry.
Mayes was released on bond following his federal court appearance and remains under supervision pending sentencing. The FBI and IRS Criminal Investigation investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney David D. Whipple is prosecuting it.
