The leader of a New York church, nicknamed by the press “the bling-bling bishop” because of his flashy style and his haute couture suits, was sentenced Monday to nine years in prison for defrauding his own parishioners .
Lamor Whitehead, founder and leader of the Leaders of Tomorrow International Ministries church, came to prominence in July 2022, when he and his wife had jewelry worth more than $1 million stolen, during a sermon broadcast live on the Internet.
This 45-year-old religious leader says he is close to New York Mayor Eric Adams, businessmen and artists from the hip-hop scene. At the end of his trial in March, a popular jury found him guilty of wire fraud, attempted wire fraud, attempted extortion and lying to federal agents. On Monday, a New York court sentenced him to nine years in prison. Lamor Whitehead will also have to return $85,000 to the victims and pay a fine of $95,000, as well as spend an additional three years on supervised release upon his release from prison.
According to the prosecution, he notably encouraged one of his parishioners to invest around $90,000 of her retirement savings, ensuring that this sum was intended for the purchase of a house. But he used it to buy various luxury items and maintain his lifestyle.
This is not the first time that Lamor Whitehead has been in trouble with the law. In 2008, before founding his church, he was convicted of several charges, including identity theft, for which he spent five years behind bars, according to American media.
