New details have emerged in the case against New York City pastor Lamor Whitehead, who was charged in December 2022 with fraud and lying to federal agents. According to court documents, Whitehead claimed he could exert influence over New York City mayor Eric Adams to advance business interests.
In addition to allegedly defrauding a church member of her $90,000 retirement fund, Whitehead has been accused of extorting $5,000 from New York businessman Brandon Belmonte.
Whitehead, who pastors Leaders of Tomorrow International Ministries in the Canarsie neighborhood of Brooklyn, was made famous for being robbed of an estimated $1 million worth of jewelry in June 2022 during a Sunday service that was being live streamed.
Whitehead has gone on to become a high profile figure, in part for his flashy attire, expensive cars, and other luxury items. He has also frequently been in the headlines as a result of his confrontational public persona.
Since the time of the robbery, Whitehead has gotten into a verbal altercation with other church leaders during an Instagram Live video, challenged comedian D.L. Hughley to a boxing match and vowed to knock him out “in the name of Jesus,” and was briefly detained by police after forcibly removing a woman who had come to protest his preaching from a Leaders of Tomorrow service—an altercation that was also captured via live stream.
Court documents have now revealed that Whitehead allegedly claimed to have control over Mayor Adams, according to Daily News.
Whitehead was allegedly recorded telling Belmonte, whom he is accused of defrauding for $5,000 and attempting to extort for $500,000 more, that the two could “make so much money together” by leveraging Whitehead’s purported political connections and Belmonte’s financial resources.
“It’s unreal, bro. My connections, even with [Adams], but underneath connections,” Whitehead allegedly told the businessman. “But bro, we gotta be all-in.”
According to the March 29 court filing, as part of his scheme to extort Belmonte, Whitehead claimed that Adams would “sit down with whoever I need him to sit down with.”
Whitehead allegedly promised that in exchange for a sizable investment payment, Whitehead could sway city officials to act favorably toward Belmonte’s real estate venture.
Adams, who previously had a personal relationship with Whitehead while serving as Brooklyn borough president, has not been accused of wrongdoing. Prosecutors have previously indicated that there is no evidence to suggest Whitehead had the ability to influence Adams’ decisions as mayor.
