WATCH | US pastor robbed of nearly R17m worth of jewellery during live-streamed service

Armed men accosted the flamboyant churchman during a midmorning service

26 July 2022 - 08:44
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A US pastor and his wife were robbed of jewellery during a livestreamed church service. File image.
A US pastor and his wife were robbed of jewellery during a livestreamed church service. File image.
Image: 123RF/Roger Lamkin

A US pastor has given a first-hand account of a robbery that took place at his church, just days after he was held up at gunpoint during a live-streamed church service.

Lamor Miller-Whitehead, a Brooklyn-based pastor known for his flamboyant style, was robbed of more than $1m (nearlyt R17m) worth of jewellery during a service at his Leaders of Tomorrow International Ministries church, according to The Guardian.

The robbery is seen in widely shared video clips on social media and in all of them, Miller-Whitehead is seeing conducting a service when three armed and masked men walk in and order him to lie down.

One is then seen approaching the pastor and stripping him of his valuables while the others are seen maintaining order.

Miller-Whitehead took to social media to explain what happened, speculating that the incident may be related to claims there were guns at his church.

“A few weeks later [Sunday] we were in midmorning service and as I was preaching, I see three to four armed men come in and I told my church ... get down. I didn't know if they wanted to shoot the church up or if they were just coming for a robbery.

“They were all black men and they had masks but I could see their faces. They came in and took all of my wife's jewellery and my jewellery and left,” he said in a 37-minute clip on Instagram.

According to The Guardian, no-one was harmed during the robbery and no arrests have been made.

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