Prosecutors say Bishop Eddie Long wanted to drop burglary charges against one of the young men now accusing the megachurch pastor of coercing him into a sexual relationship.
ATLANTA — Prosecutors say Bishop Eddie Long wanted to drop burglary charges against one of the young men now accusing the megachurch pastor of coercing him into a sexual relationship. DeKalb County Chief Assistant District Attorney Don Geary said Tuesday through a spokesman that Long asked for the charges to be dropped against Maurice Robinson in August, about two months after authorities say he and Anthony Boyd broke into New Birth Missionary Baptist Church. The district attorney’s office declined Long’s request to drop the charges and is still investigating the case. In a statement, Geary said, "It is not uncommon for the district attorney’s office to proceed with prosecuting a defendant even when the victim asked that the charges be dropped." Robinson, Anthony Flagg, Jamal Parris and Spencer LeGrande are suing Long in state court, claiming that he abused his "spiritual authority" and gave them cars, clothes, cash and trips to lure them into sexual relationships while they were teen members of New Birth. In Robinson’s complaint against Long, his lawyers allege Robinson took "the items most precious to Defendant Long" in retaliation. According to the incident report, the stolen items included an iPhone, iPad, and an undetermined amount of jewelry. Craig Gillen, Long’s attorney, was out of town and unavailable for comment on Tuesday. A message left with Long’s spokesman, Art Franklin, was not immediately returned Tuesday. Long told worshippers on Sunday that he would fight like David against Goliath against the claims, though he stopped short of denying them. Copyright 2010 Associated Press.