Matthew Purchase, former owner of Legacy Family Funeral Services in Berrien Springs, pleaded guilty this morning during a plea conference at the Berrien County Courthouse in Niles.

Purchase was arrested in August 2010 and faced 15 felony charges after a preliminary audit of the business showed he may have embezzled hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Prosecutor Steve Pierangeli confirmed Purchase’s plea this afternoon.

“Mr. Purchase pleaded guilty today to one count of attempted criminal enterprising and a second count of attempted embezzlement of over $20,000,” Pierangeli said.

The felony charge of attempted criminal enterprising carries a possible 20-year sentence, Pierangeli said, the attempted embezzlement charge is a five-year felony.

But things for Purchase could change when he appears in court for sentencing May 2.

“If he comes up with the full amount of restitution before the day of sentencing,” Pierangeli said, “He’d be able to withdraw his plea to those two charges and plea to two counts of embezzlement. One would be a five-year and the other, a 10-year.”

Following Purchase’s arrest in August, detectives with the Michigan State Police were inundated with victims who had handed their money over to the funeral home director for pre-paid services.

Det. Sgt. Fabian Suarez told the Star at the time of their investigation they were working with a list of 60 names but had been expecting more.

Asked then if he thought Purchase’s victims would ever see their money back, Suarez said he didn’t know.

It’s estimated Purchase embezzled around $200,000 from the business.

Just last month, Tim Brown, owner of Brown Funeral Home in Niles, said he would donate his services to those families whose money was lost in the embezzlement.