*On this date in 1999, Rev. Henry Lyons pled guilty to tax evasion, embezzlement, and grand theft.
These charges were committed while he served as president of the National Baptist Convention, USA Inc., America's most prominent Black denomination. Rev. Henry Lyons was a fraud and a thief.
The sordid tale began in 1997 when Lyons' wife, Deborah, set fire to a home she discovered her husband had purchased with Bernice Edwards, a companion whom Lyon said was his mistress. Rev. Lyons was released from prison in December 2003.
