A recent story involving a trio that accosted flashy Brooklyn Bishop Lamor Whitehead and robbed him at gunpoint during a live-streamed church service at the Tomorrow International Ministries made waves in July 2022. Today, the story has taken another dimension after a fresh allegation of theft was leveled against the Bishop.
Parishioner Pauline Anderson, 56, accused Bishop Lamor Whitehead who allegedly has a record of grifting and has served time in prison for identity theft and grand larceny, of scamming her. The lawsuit, first reported on by The City reveals in November 2020, Bishop Whitehead convinced her to liquidate her life savings and give him $90,000. Unable to get a mortgage due to poor credit, Bishop Whitehead offered to help Anderson and promised to buy and renovate a home for her.
Whitehead agreed to pay Anderson $100 a month since her savings was her only source of income. He allegedly made only one of the $100 payments to Anderson in January 2021. Each time she asked about the status of her home in the following months, he repeatedly told her that he was tied up with his election campaign for Brooklyn Borough president and had used the “investment” as a “donation.” According to an exhibit in the suit, Whitehead texted a message to Anderson saying “And for the record, anything that was given to me is a Donation unless it’s attached to a contract! I was making investments that’s what I Do!”
The suit further alleges, that instead of helping Anderson find a home, the 44-year-old Bishop, used the funds as a down payment in a contract to purchase a $4.4 million home for himself in Saddle River, New Jersey.
Anderson, who was introduced to Whitehead by her son Rasheed Anderson in 2020, only found out about the Saddle River home after Whitehead accidentally sent an email to Rasheed about the purchase.
Though the Saddle River purchase didn’t go through, the report says the luxury-loving Whitehead with 1.6 m million followers on Instagram, where he regularly goes live, bought himself a $4.5 million apartment complex in Hartford, Connecticut.
Whitehead blamed the breakdown on Anderson’s son’s behavior, calling him a “liar” and the “devil.” Anderson texted Whitehead in May 2021, letting him know she would contact authorities about the alleged scam.
Anderson has prayed the court for $1 million in damages for Whitehead’s “morally reprehensible acts” which made her lose her entire life savings.
In response to questions about his past and the lawsuit, Whitehead held a press conference a week ago saying:
“My wife has not stopped crying. My daughter has not stopped crying yet. My members have not stopped crying yet,” Whitehead said during the conference. “Nobody’s empathizing with my church!”
He also said that the focus on his lifestyle was tied to his race.
“Why do we always gotta tear Black men down?” As soon as a Black man has a tailored suit, he’s a criminal” Whitehead added.
Celia Jones writes on events and newsworthy stories.
