A bishop who was in the middle of delivering his sermon and his wife were robbed at gunpoint of more than $1 million worth of jewelry at a Brooklyn church on Sunday, police said. The robbery was captured on live video by the service.
Lamore M. Whitehead, 44, bishop of Leaders of the Future International Ministries in the southeast Brooklyn neighborhood of Canarsie, spoke about the armed robbery in an Instagram post, calling it an example of “how the devil moves.”
“The devil doesn’t care; he sent them,” said Mr. Whitehead. He did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Just before the robbery began, footage of the sermon posted on YouTube showed Mr. Whitehead asking his congregation: “How many of you have lost your faith because you saw someone else die?” Almost immediately afterward, a trio of armed and masked individuals in black clothing entered the church, according to Mr. Whitehead, police and footage.
Seconds after his question, Mr. Whitehead appeared to notice the intruders as they entered the church, and he laid down on the raised stage while raising his arms. “I didn’t know if they wanted to shoot up the church or if they were just coming for a robbery,” he said in an Instagram post. Screams could be heard from the parishioners. It is unclear how many people attended.
He described how he was lying on the ground with a gun pointed at him and his belongings, including his watch, multiple chains, wedding ring and bishop’s cross, were subsequently taken from him. He said the attackers tore off his priest’s collar to get at his necklaces. Mr Whitehead said he believed the intruders were unaware they were being filmed.
Jewelery was also taken from Mr Whitehead’s 38-year-old wife, police said, adding that neither victim was injured. After the theft, which took place shortly after 11 a.m., the three fled on foot and got into a white Mercedes Benz car. They were last seen running away, police said, and no arrests have been made. The investigation is ongoing, the New York Police Department said.
In an Instagram post on Sunday, Mr Whitehead addressed the thieves and asked them to surrender. He told them their actions had traumatized parishioners, including young children, who he said were still crying. He said a gun was held to his 8-month-old daughter’s face.
“You did this to the church, the church where I’m sure your grandmother praises God and Jesus,” he said. “There’s no reason to go into a church and disrupt it.”
Mr Whitehead also hit back at the criticism, calling him “flashy” because of his accessories and luxury car.
“It’s about me buying what I want to buy,” Mr Whitehead said. “It’s my right to buy what I want to buy if I’ve worked hard for it.”
He also expressed gratitude to God that his church avoided a mass shooting, a fatal scenario that he noted other congregations have experienced. He promised he would return to the pulpit to preach this Sunday.
Mr Whitehead said in a Facebook Live broadcast on Monday that he was offering a $50,000 cash reward for information leading to the arrest of the armed robbers.
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