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Second guilty plea in Brooklyn pastor livestream robbery case

By

Samantha Max

Published Dec 1, 2023

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Bishop Lamor Whitehead outside court Tuesday.

 

Samantha Max / Gothamist

By

Samantha Max

Published Dec 1, 2023

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A second person accused of robbing a politically connected Brooklyn pastor while he was preaching in July 2022 pleaded guilty to a federal robbery charge in court Friday.

Juwan Anderson, 25, admitted to participating in a mid-sermon robbery that members of the Leaders of Tomorrow International Church watched in real time — some in person and some tuning into a livestream of the service. His attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Anderson’s guilty plea comes a couple weeks after his co-defendant, Say-Quan Pollack, also 25, pleaded guilty to a federal robbery charge for stealing what police say was about $1 million worth of jewelry from Bishop Lamor Whitehead and his wife. Pollack had pulled out of an earlier plea deal just minutes before appearing in court in September as his and Anderson’s attorneys tried to arrange a meeting for the two co-defendants to discuss a potential trial strategy.

Whitehead is currently facing his own criminal charges in federal court in Manhattan, on allegations that he swindled $90,000 of retirement savings from a parishioner and also tried to pressure a Bronx businessman into giving him $500,000 in exchange for favorable treatment from the city government. He has pleaded not guilty and denied the accusations.

Whitehead, who is a regular figure in local media, calls Mayor Eric Adams a personal mentor. He is also known for his lavish style and is sometimes called the “Bling Bishop.”

Judge William F. Kuntz of the Eastern District of New York is expected to sentence Anderson and Pollack in the coming months. Prosecutors say law enforcement has yet to locate a third person suspected of participating in the robbery.

Tagged

public safety

brooklyn

Samantha Max

Samantha reports on whether New Yorkers feel safe and whether the institutions that are supposed to protect them are working. Before coming to WNYC/Gothamist, she spent three years covering the criminal justice system in Tennessee for Nashville Public Radio. Her reporting on Nashville's police department received multiple awards, including the Daniel Schorr Journalism Prize. Samantha was also part of the inaugural class of Report for America, a service journalism program that sends up-and-coming reporters to local newsrooms across the country. She is a Northwestern University grad, a Baltimore native and fluent in Spanish. Got a tip? Email [email protected] or Signal: samanthamaxwnyc.93.

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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations

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