NYC's ‘Bling Bishop’ Lamor Whitehead should be jailed before final sentencing, prosecutors say
NEW YORK — Manhattan federal prosecutors have asked for convicted scam artist Lamor Whitehead — known as the “Bling Bishop” for his flamboyant lifestyle — to be jailed ahead of his July sentencing, according to new court filings.
Jurors previously found Whitehead, 45, guilty of five counts including wire fraud, attempted extortion and lying to the FBI after he stole the life savings of his parishioner’s mother and perpetrated other schemes.
In court documents filed last week, prosecutors claimed Whitehead disparaged and threatened Pauline Anderson, the woman he conned $90,000 out of, and her son on social media, accusing the family of being FBI informants and having involvement in federal crimes.
Anderson was a single mother to one of Whitehead’s parishioners at Leaders of Tomorrow International Ministries in Canarsie, Brooklyn. The “Bling Bishop” was convicted of targeting her along with a money lending company and Bronx businessman Brandon Belmonte.
Prosecutors also charged that Whitehead violated a restraining order when he showed off several sealed documents during a live stream on Patreon, constituting contempt.
The feds argued that Whitehead’s erratic behavior poses “a danger to the safety of another person or the community, and that he is unlikely to abide by any condition or combination of conditions of release,” the documents stated.
In a letter addressed to Manhattan Federal Judge Lorna Schofield, Whitehead pleaded to remain on bail until his sentencing, noting the disclosure of the protective order was an “honest mistake.”
“It would be devastating to take me away from my two 16-year-old children, my nine-year-old daughter and my two-year-old baby girl,” he wrote. “Even though I maintain my innocence, I feel like I let my family down.”
Whitehead is due back in court next Monday, when Schofield will determine if Whitehead will spend the days leading up to his sentencing behind bars.
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