Pearland bishop accused of fraud

An interfaith ministries organization is suing after, it says, a Pearland bishop and others engaged in fraud when they failed to follow through on the sale of a Baytown-area church.

Interfaith Interdenominational Ministries and Patricia Brown-Johnson filed a lawsuit on Sept. 22 in Harris County District Court against Pearland resident Bishop Rufus Kyles Jr., individually and as agent of Texas Southeast First Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction, and Church of God in Christ, citing common law fraud, fraud in real estate transaction, breach of contract and negligent misrepresentation.

The plaintiffs say that in 2005, the defendants contracted with them to purchase their church, located in Baytown, moved in, changed its name to Central Heights C.O.G.I.C and used it to host events for the Texas Southeast First Ecclesiastical Church of God.

One year later, Kyles had failed to close on the property as agreed but refused to leave until law enforcement forcibly removed him from the premises, according to the brief.

The plaintiffs are seeking actual and exemplary damages, attorney’s fees and court costs. They are being represented in the case by Friendswood attorney P. Blake Henshaw.

Harris County District Court Case No. 2011-56848.

This is a report on a civil lawsuit filed at the Harris County Courthouse. The details in this report come from an original complaint filed by a plaintiff. Please note, a complaint represents an accusation by a private individual, not the government. It is not an indication of guilt, and it only represents one side of the story.