There are no politics more brutal than church politics, and there is no politician who knows that better than Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg.
Before he took a seat on the front row of a Manhattan criminal courtroom where he is personally prosecuting former President Donald Trump in a salacious hush money trial, Bragg managed to maneuver his way around a scandal at a house of worship where politics is practically written in the bylaws.
Bragg is a member of Harlem’s historic Abyssinian Baptist Church, where a deacon, Jerome Yeiser, is accused of posing as a contractor and scamming home-owning parishioners out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Bragg, the prosecutor, has been forced to watch from the sidelines because of his obvious conflict of interest. Not only is Bragg a church member, but he is also a Sunday school teacher whose students include the daughters of the accused deacon.
Enter the Bronx District Attorney’s Office, which stepped in when Bragg stepped aside. But prosecutors there quickly backed off, saying they didn’t have enough evidence and resources to pursue criminal charges of grand larceny, according to the New York Times.
Now, the homeowners have been left in the lurch, with little to rely on but faith and prayer.
“It is our sincere hope that the Bronx District Attorney’s office will reconsider their evaluation of Jerome Yeiser’s actions and swiftly reopen their investigation,” said Harlem homeowner Mara Porter, who alleges in a suit against Yeiser that she and her husband were scammed out of nearly $200,000.
“We have the utmost faith in the DA’s commitment to seeking justice and protecting hardworking families like us. We implore their office to do so in this case.”
Among those backing Porter are members of Abyssinian’s deacon board, who say Yeiser confessed his sins to them during a meeting in 2019 with the church’s esteemed pastor, the Rev. Calvin Butts, who died in 2022.
“When presented with the allegations, Yeiser confessed entirely,” the deacons wrote in a letter on April 9 to Bronx DA Darcell Clark, urging her to reopen the investigation.
“He began by detailing his dire financial situation, explaining that he had a large tax bill and that the IRS had frozen his accounts. He admitted to using the Porters’ money to settle the tax bill. He admitted that he had not completed the renovation work the Porters had paid for. Yeiser admitted that he owed the Porters money, which he estimated to be around $40,000. Yeiser became extremely emotional at being confronted by his wrongdoing and began crying.
“He committed to repaying the money that was owed. We ended this meeting with a closing prayer.”
Yeiser has since denied that he made any confession to the deacons or to anyone else. He has maintained his innocence, and even sued the Porters and other church members for defamation.
Among the deacons who signed the letter is the Rev. C. Vernon Mason, a former civil rights attorney, who, despite being disbarred nearly 30 years ago, remains highly regarded in Harlem circles.
It’s still Yeiser’s word against theirs, but the deacons make a compelling case.
Granted, the deacon board is not under oath, and the pastor’s office is not a criminal courtroom.
But their account should be enough for the Bronx DA to take another look — since Bragg clearly can’t.
LEONARD GREENE: Scam scandal splits Harlem’s Abyssinian Baptist Church
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28.04.2024
There are no politics more brutal than church politics, and there is no politician who knows that better than Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg.
Before he took a seat on the front row of a Manhattan criminal courtroom where he is personally prosecuting former President Donald Trump in a salacious hush money trial, Bragg managed to maneuver his way around a scandal at a house of worship where politics is practically written in the bylaws.
Bragg is a member of Harlem’s historic Abyssinian Baptist Church, where a deacon, Jerome Yeiser, is accused of posing as a contractor and scamming home-owning parishioners out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Bragg, the prosecutor, has been forced to watch from the sidelines because of his obvious conflict of interest. Not only is Bragg a church member, but he is also a Sunday school........
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