Brooklyn Bishop Allegedly Robbed of $1 Million in Jewelry During Livestreamed Service Bishop Lamor M. Whitehead was delivering his Sunday sermon in New York when he and his wife were allegedly robbed by three men at gunpoint.
By Emily Rella
Opinions expressed by BIZ Experiences contributors are their own.
There's nothing holy about this situation!
A Brooklyn-based Bishop was robbed at gunpoint during one of his sermons — and the entire incident was caught on a livestream camera.
Three masked gunmen entered the Leaders of Tomorrow International Ministries church in Brooklyn's Canarsie neighborhood around 11:15 a.m. on Sunday, where they approached Bishop Lamor M. Whitehead, 44, and his wife, and took off with allegedly over $1 million worth of jewelry, according to police.
A New York City bishop was robbed at gun point mid-sermon and the entire thing was captured on a live streamhttps://t.co/dvfBF5rz9Q pic.twitter.com/B7eMdmitna
— Jon Levine (@LevineJonathan) July 25, 2022
On camera, Whitehead begins to look fearful before saying "alright, alright, alright" several times as he softly hits the floor on the altar.
"That -- 'all right, all right, all right' -- is pretty much stating that I don't want, I'm not going to do anything, right, 'cause I know y'all coming for me, y'all coming straight to me. I don't want my parishioners hurt," Whitehead told CBS News.
Whitehead said that the alleged robbers stole his bishop's ring and chain along with his wedding ring, and took all of his wife's jewelry.
The bishop has garnered a reputation for being "flashy", often donning fancy designer suits and jewels as portrayed on his Instagram.
Whitehead's lifestyle choices have been drawing in mixed reactions on social media.
I'm sure he was happy to share the wealth with his less fortunate flock, who obviously needed those things more than he did… and I'm positive he will forgive them with his whole heart.
— Michelle Clark (@mik1of3) July 26, 2022
How the hell can a Bishop afford 400K worth of bling and why would he wear it to church?
— Nathaniel Hawthorne's Ghost (@Hawthorne_Ghost) July 25, 2022
My heart goes out to the bishop, and his congregants. They must feel very invaded by this situation.
— Usedcarsforsale (@CarsforSaleinUS) July 25, 2022
I didn't know priests got paid that well.
— Dark Tide PK (@Darktidepk) July 25, 2022
"It's not about me being flashy. It's about me purchasing what I want to purchase," he said on Instagram. "It's my prerogative to purchase what I want to purchase. If I worked hard for it, I can purchase what I want to purchase."
Bishop Whitehead maintains that his parish is "traumatized," taking to his Instagram live on Tuesday to preach a sermon about healing.
Police have not yet verified whether or not the suspects have been identified or found. BIZ Experiences has not verified the video.
