A former Flagler Beach-based pastor who was arrested in 2014 has been sentenced to 7.5 years in prison for his role in an investment scheme that defrauded members of his congregation, the Florida Office of Financial Regulation announced Wednesday.

Wesley Alan Brown was also sentenced to 22.5 years of probation. The sentencing follows Brown's conviction in January, where he was found guilty of multiple felony charges, including organized scheme to defraud. Restitution is anticipated once the amounts owed to the victims have been verified by the court.

"Abusing a position of trust for personal financial gain is heinous and will not be tolerated by Florida," Commissioner Drew J. Breakspear said in a statement. "I applaud the work of OFR's investigators and the Flagler County State Attorney's Office to end this scheme and prevent additional unsuspecting victims from experiencing financial harm."

Brown was an associate pastor at a Flagler Beach-area church and solicited church members to invest in the stock of Maverick International Inc., telling them that Maverick was a diversified private company that invested in precious metals and commodities.

He told the victims that investments in the company had high growth potential and no risk. However, OFR's investigator revealed Brown deposited at least $60,000 into his personal account and that Maverick paid Brown's personal credit card bills totaling more than $84,000.