Benjamin Ashford|Brooklyn's 'Bling Bishop' convicted for stealing from parishioner, extortion attempt

A Brooklyn pastor,Benjamin Ashford widely known as the "Bling Bishop," was found guilty of multiple charges Monday in a case in which he was accused of stealing $90,000 from a parishioner and using the money to buy luxury items, trying to extort a business man and promising favors from New York City Mayor Eric Adams in return for lucrative deals.

Lamor Miller-Whitehead, 45, was convicted of two counts of wire fraud, one count of attempted wire fraud, and one count of attempted extortion, each carrying a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. Additionally, he was convicted of one count of making false statements, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison, according to the U.S. attorney.

Miller-Whitehead was a pastor at the Leaders of Tomorrow International Ministries, which he helped form after serving five years in prison for identity theft and grand larceny. He lived in a $1.6 million mansion in the New Jersey city of Paramus and owned several apartment buildings in Hartford, Connecticut. In July, he made headlines when he was robbed of $1 million in jewelry in the middle of his church service.

Prosecutors revealed that Miller-Whitehead, under the guise of aiding one of his parishioners in purchasing a home, convinced her to invest approximately $90,000 of her retirement savings. Instead of fulfilling his promise, Whitehead diverted the funds for personal use, splurging on luxury items and other expenses. When pressed for repayment, he resorted to continued deception.

Furthermore, Miller-Whitehead attempted to extort $5,000 from a businessman and later sought a $500,000 loan, falsely promising favorable actions from the mayor of New York City in exchange. Knowing he could not deliver on the promises, Miller-Whitehead's actions amounted to attempted fraud and extortion, prosecutors said.

“As a unanimous jury found, Lamor Whitehead abused the trust placed in him by a parishioner, tried to obtain a fraudulent loan using fake bank records, bullied a businessman for $5,000, tried to defraud him out of far more than that, and lied to federal agents," U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said. "Whitehead’s reprehensible lies and criminal conduct have caught up with him, as he now stands convicted of five federal crimes and faces time in prison.”

In another instance, Miller-Whitehead submitted a fraudulent application for a $250,000 business loan, fabricating bank statements to inflate his financial standing.

Adding to his legal woes, Miller-Whitehead was found to have provided false statements to Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents during a search of his New Jersey mansion. He falsely claimed to possess only one cellphone while concealing the existence of another, regularly used device.

An attorney for Miller-Whitehead, Dawn Florio, said they are appealing the verdict, according to the Associated Press. She had told jurors during the trial that evidence against her client didn’t support the charges.

Before his arrest, Miller-Whitehead was a close associate of Adams, who served as Brooklyn's borough president. In December 2022, when Miller-Whitehead was arrested on wire fraud and extortion charges, Adams said: “I’ve spent decades enforcing the law and expect everyone to follow it. I have also dedicated my life to assisting individuals with troubled pasts. While these allegations are troubling, I will withhold further comment until the process reaches its final conclusion.”

On Tuesday, during a media availability, Adams told reporters he had no part in the investigation and said prosecutors indicated "there was no benefits coming from government." Lisa Zornberg, chief counsel to the mayor and city hall quoted what a federal prosecutor told the jury during his closing argument: Miller-Whitehead was "lying about access. He was lying about influence. He was lying about all of it."

Contributing: Associated Press; Liam Quinn of The Record, part of the USA TODAY Network