Gunmen on Sunday entered the church of a New York pastor during a livestreamed church service and took away the jewellery which the pastor and his wife were wearing.
Media outlets in the United States say Bishop Lamor Miller-Whitehead and his wife were robbed of jewellery worth US$1 million (K1 billion).
A video of the robbery has been shared by news outlets in the US. It shows that Bishop Lamor Miller-Whitehead was preaching when the armed thieves wearing masks entered the Leaders of Tomorrow International Ministries.
The attackers interrupted the sermon and demanded property from the bishop and his wife.
“All right, all right, all right,” Whitehead says in the video, as he raised his hands and lowered himself to the floor.
He later explained that he was saying “all right” to let the attackers know that he was going to comply to their demands.
“I got women and children there. As I got down, one went to my wife and took all her jewellery, and had the gun in front of my 8-month-old baby’s face,” he continued.
“Took off my bishop’s ring, my wedding band and took off my bishop chain, and then I had chains underneath my robe, and he start tapping my neck to see if (there was) anything else — so that means they knew, they watched and they knew that I have other jewellery,” he said.
Police said the gunmen left the church on foot and then drove off in a white Mercedes-Benz. Investigations into the robbery are underway.
US media outlets reported that the bishop has been criticized in the past for his jewellery and his Rolls-Royce and the criticism resurfaced after the the robbery. However, Lamor Miller-Whitehead has defended himself.
“It’s not about me being flashy. It’s about me purchasing what I want to purchase,” Whitehead said. “If I worked hard for it, I can purchase what I want to purchase.”
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