Remember the Jinwrights? I blogged last year that the popular pastors had been indicted on tax evasion charges. Their trial is now slated to begin but not without some unusual maneuverings.
The prosecution hoped to have the Jinwrights thrown in jail just before their April 6 trial due to violation of the terms of their bail. Prosecutors claim that the Jinwrights have continued to be defiant, refusing to pay their taxes for 2007 and 2008. Payment of taxes during trial was a condition of the Jinwrights’ bail. The judge denied the request for immediate jail time.
However, in an odd turn of events, US District Judge Frank Whitney ordered the pastors to live apart prior to the trial and to limit their communications between each other. That means that the married couple will have to split up temporarily before their trial. The judge found that there was probable cause that the two are conspiring not to pay their overdue taxes, saying, “The government has shown they are involved in a conspiracy. I’m going to have to separate them.”
The Jinwrights reported wages for 2007 was $465,507, not including a housing allowance of $160,833 and car allowance of $45,826. Despite raking in nearly 3/4 million dollars, the Jinwrights claim that they were unable to pay their taxes. That income did not, however, prevent them from spending $178,000 for eight vehicles, $311,000 on their two homes, $4,000 in lawn care, $9,000 in home repairs, $4,200 in house cleaning expenses and $20,000 for furniture in that same year.
In fact, the Jinwrights have lived extremely well off the backs of their church-goers while not paying their taxes. From 2001 to 2007, the Jinwrights received more than $5.3 million from their church. They have failed to report nearly $2 million to the IRS, all while buying or leasing more homes and cars. Since 2001, they have allegedly leased 18 vehicles, including a Bentley GT worth $175,232 and a Rolls-Royce Phantom worth $352,500. They bought a million dollar home on NC’s Lake Norman and leased a $3.7 million house outside of Charlotte, NC. And yet, they claim that they can’t make payment to the IRS.
Go figure.
Even more remarkable? The Jinwrights continue to work at their church. Shades of Jim Bakker, I guess. How funding their greed passes as God’s work is beyond me.
I guess there’s no telephone or internet service in NC – so keeping them physically apart will definitely prevent them from communicating with each other.
@Mary Kay maybe the judge is trying to rpevent the power of prayer.. you know what they say, when two or more people are gathered in his name blah blah…
The judge probably did them a favor. @Samuel, prayer potentially coud have prevented some of the activities they were involved in. It’s amazing to see howpeople turn to prayer on in a time or need rather than to seek guidance. While now is a good time to pray for a miracle, the miracle would not be needed if they would simply follow Godly principles,…….and lying and deception is definitely not one of them.