Bridget Pollard was taken for hundreds of thousands of dollars by televangelist Ernest Angley’s megachurch in Ohio, a lawsuit filed by a public guardian is claiming, CBS News reported.
The 76-year-old woman, who is living with dementia and a mental illness, emptied her husband’s state pension upon his death in 2015 and later wrote out a check for $340,000 to Grace Cathedral, which allegedly was pressuring her to give money.
Now the Cook County Public Guardian’s Office in Chicago, which currently cares for the widow, is suing the church for the money taken.
"She was basically stalked by church to give money," said Dawn Lawkowski-Keller of the Public Guardian's Office, per CBS News. "The literature talks about how you'll go to heaven if you give this money."
A doctor diagnosed Pollard with bipolar disorder, stating that she is not able to make sound decisions and lacks the capacity to assert personal and financial decisions.
Pollard’s niece, Bridget Johnson, explained that her aunt holed herself up in her apartment and lived in hoarding conditions, dismissing relatives attempting to help her, CBS Chicago reported.
Johnson said Pollard had been a member of the church but had only visited a couple of times and had not attended it in years.
Her only contact with Grace Cathedral was through one of the church’s singers, Corliss Whitney, who allegedly petitioned to become Pollard’s guardian but who did not attempt to help the elderly woman or remove her from her toxic environment.
Relatives believe Whitney, who is cited in the lawsuit, had ulterior motives.
CBS noted that some of the church’s assets have been frozen as the public guardian's office fights to get Pollard's money back.
Grace Cathedral and its pastor Angley have come under fire in recent months.
The Beacon Journal in Akron, Ohio reported the church and its television station, Winston Broadcasting Network, is facing another lawsuit for defaulting on a $3.6 million loan.
According to the report an oil lease company, Beck Energy Corp., loaned the church money in 2013 under the belief that it would be paid back by Angley.
The company filed a lawsuit in November seeking damages and a foreclosure on the property that houses the television station in Cuyahoga Falls, The Beacon Journal noted.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.