Eddie Long faced fifth accuser, says Fox report

In May, pastor Eddie Long settled a sexual misconduct case out of court. (John Amis - AP) Eddie Long, the Georgia megachurch pastor who settled out of court with four young men who accused him of sexual misconduct, may have faced allegations from a fifth accuser, Fox 5 Atlanta is reporting.

The news station aired and published a story on its
Web site Wednesday evening on the outcome of their seven-week investigation of the case:

The FOX 5 I-Team has uncovered that there was a fifth accuser in the Bishop Eddie Long sexual misconduct case. He never filed a lawsuit and his name was kept a secret, but Centino Kemp’s allegations of sexual misconduct against Bishop Long brought him front and center into the recent settlement negotiations.

The Washington Post could not confirm the allegations in the Fox report. Requests for comments from Long on Thursday were not immediately answered.

In May, the influential Christian leader settled out of court with the original group of young men. The Washington Post’s report at the time noted:

Long faced accusations that he “abused his spiritual authority to seduce [teenage boys] with cars, money, clothes, jewelry, international trips and access to celebrities.” Later details reported in the Christian Post said that the married father of four “admitted to mentoring the men and sharing rooms with them while on trips, but denied any sexual activity took place.”

In a 2010 sermon addressing the accusations, Long said, “I have never in my life portrayed myself as a perfect man.” But, he added to cheers from his congregation, “I am not the man that’s being portrayed on the television. . . This thing, I’m gonna fight.”

B.J. Bernstein, attorney for the original four plaintiffs, said in a statement in May: “The matter has been resolved. Neither attorney Bernstein nor the plaintiffs themselves will be available for interview on this matter, now or in the future,” making it unlikely that the truth of what happened between Long and his accusers will become public.

Long pastors over 2,5000 members at his New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Lithonia, Ga..