On Tuesday, September 30, 2025, Heather Browning, age 35 of Dublin, GA was arrested and charged with one count of O.C.G.A. 16-8-3 Theft by Deception. Browning was the treasurer for Cedar Grove Methodist Church and the Clerk for the City of Dublin.

On Monday, September 29, 2025, the Laurens County Sheriff’s Office requested GBI agents to assist with an investigation after members of Cedar Grove Methodist Church in Alamo, Laurens County, Georgia reported money missing from their bank accounts. The investigation shows Browning breached her fiduciary duty by falsely writing and cashing checks from the bank accounts of Cedar Grove Methodist Church.

Browning was booked into the Laurens County Detention Center.

This investigation is active and ongoing. Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the GBI Regional Investigative Office in Eastman at 478-374-6988. Anonymous tips can also be submitted by calling 1-800-597-TIPS (8477), online at https://gbi.georgia.gov/submit-tips-online, or by downloading the See Something, Send Something mobile app.

Once the investigation is complete, it will be given to the Dublin Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office for prosecution.