A former Pittsburgh police chaplain has been accused of soliciting donations for the family of a 12-year-old homicide victim and pocketing the money.

Keith Smith, 61, of Crafton, was arrested yesterday morning and charged with two counts of theft. He was taken to the Allegheny County Jail.

Police Chief Nate Harper had already removed him from his volunteer position with the police in August after local ministers raised questions about his ordination credentials.

In March, according to police, Mr. Smith told the pastor of Community House Presbyterian Church on the North Side that he was raising money for relatives of Jolesa Barber, an honor student who was gunned down Jan. 28 while visiting her sister's home on Brightridge Street.

The shooting outraged the community, and the Rev. Wayne C. Peck agreed to help Mr. Smith. He collected $332 from parishioners during a Sunday service and turned the money over to Mr. Smith, who never gave it to Jolesa's family, police said.

Top police officials yesterday said they believe Mr. Smith also sought money from several other churches and organizations. They asked anyone with information to contact the Police Bureau at 412-323-7800.

In most cases, families of homicide victims -- not police -- set up their own accounts with local banks to accept donations.

"We don't solicit money for any types of causes like this," Lt. Kevin Kraus said.

According to a criminal complaint, Mr. Smith was previously involved in a similar scheme when he was convicted of mail and wire fraud in U.S. District Court in 1994. Lara Zinda, the city's former head police chaplain, who served in the position for 10 months and also was dismissed in August, brought Mr. Smith on as a volunteer. The pair would cross yellow tape at murder scenes to comfort victims' families. They often wore clerical collars.

In an e-mail message from August, Ms. Zinda said police had been aware of Mr. Smith's criminal record.

"Because many in the criminal justice system are often best reached by a person of similar experience, the bureau's chaplain advisory team made it a point to consider some candidates with prior criminal records," she wrote. "I stand by my recommendation of Rev. Smith as a candidate."

Assistant Chief Maurita Bryant yesterday said there was a "very basic" background check on Mr. Smith. Police decided to take a closer look at him after receiving warnings from local clergy.

Mr. Smith claims to be pastor of Blessed Redeemer Congregational Church, which is based out of his Crafton home and has only a handful of members. According to the church's Web site, it shares office space at Trinity Lutheran Church on the North Side. But Trinity terminated Mr. Smith's lease in July.

The Web site also says Mr. Smith's church is affiliated with the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches and the Methodist Church in America.

In August, a representative of the Western Pennsylvania Conference of the United Methodist Church said he had not heard of a denomination called the Methodist Church in America.

The Rev. Dr. Thomas Richard, executive secretary of the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches, based in Oak Creek, Wis., yesterday said Blessed Redeemer was an "inactive member" of his organization.

"We had heard things several years ago that caused us to question the legitimacy of the church," he said, declining to discuss details.

He also said he did not know if Mr. Smith and Ms. Zinda were ordained ministers.

Ms. Zinda declined to comment yesterday. She does not face any charges, police said.

The Rev. John C. Welch, dean of students at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary and head of the Pittsburgh Interfaith Impact Network, is the current head of the police chaplaincy program.