While most pastors use donations to support Christian causes, Lamor Whitehead, aka New York City’s “Bling Pastor,” was arrested by federal agents for allegedly scamming his parishioners out of over $100,000 in donations meant for the church.
Whitehead is the leader of Brooklyn’s Leaders of Tomorrow International Church, which regularly accepts donations from across the country. However, instead of using the money for Christian causes, he allegedly spent it on luxury goods and clothing for himself. If convicted in court, he faces up to sixty-five years in prison.
Whitehead was charged with two counts of wire fraud, one count of extortion, and one count of making material false statements. While his attorney insists that he is innocent of all charges, federal agents believe otherwise.
The “Bling Pastor” is well known for preaching the prosperity gospel, in which people donate money to his cause in order to receive blessings from God. Unfortunately, his parishioners may have been misled as they ended up losing a significant amount of their money.
One of Whitehead’s loyal parishioners was allegedly scammed out of approximately $90,000 of her retirement savings. He promised to use the money to buy her a house but instead spent it on personal luxuries. Federal authorities claim that Whitehead had numerous communications with the victim and her son via text message and the internet before they wired him tens of thousands of dollars across state lines.
The victim’s details were not listed in the charges, but the case appears to match a civil lawsuit brought forward by Pauline Anderson in the summer of 2022. Anderson claimed that she visited the Leaders of Tomorrow International Church in 2020 while she was recovering from surgery.
Anderson was seeking $1 million in damages through the alleged scam.
She revealed to the pastor that she was struggling to pay her mortgage, and he offered to help her. After doubting his intentions, Anderson ultimately decided to give Whitehead her retirement savings because she believed him to be a “supposed man of the cloth” who had previously helped her son secure housing.
Whitehead was previously sentenced to two years in state prison for identity fraud and grand larceny charges. He was released early on good behavior in 2006. This latest scandal has left his parishioners and followers reeling as they come to terms with the reality of the “Bling Pastor’s” actions.
Source: AWM