A flashy, jewelry-wearing Brooklyn pastor was convicted Monday in federal court of using a parishioner’s retirement savings and trying to extort a businessman while touting he had connections to the New York City mayor.
Lamor Whitehead, nicknamed the “Bling Bishop,” is a pastor at the Leaders of Tomorrow International Ministries. He was found guilty of five counts, including wire fraud, attempted extortion and making false statements to the FBI. The convictions are from three separate schemes.
Whitehead, known for his Louis Vuitton suits and extravagant jewelry, also made headlines in 2022 after he said he and his wife were robbed of $1 million worth of jewelry at their church.
Imagine if churches were required to have open books like every other non-profit in this country.
Sure, it wouldn’t stop some parishioners from leaving their money-grubbing churches, but it sure would encourage others to do so.
And maybe people like Osteen would face more of a real blowback if we found out exactly what he’s getting out of his megachurch.