A former pastor wanted in connection with a bank robbery in Danville has been arrested, according to a news release from the Danville Police Department.
Lawrence Winford Roy, 47, who formerly was pastor of God’s Holy Church in Christ on Fayette Street in Martinsville, was arrested around 8:10 p.m. Saturday during a traffic stop in Myrtle Beach, S.C., the release said.
Roy was arrested as a fugitive from Virginia and will be extradited at a later date, the release said.
He was being sought in connection with a Monday robbery at the Bank of America, 3205 Riverside Drive, Danville.
See Sunday’s story below:
Investigators in Danville are working with their counterparts in Greensboro, N.C., to find a man wanted in connection with a bank robbery.
A grand larceny warrant has been issued for Lawrence Winford Roy, 47, the former pastor of a Martinsville church. He is being sought in connection with a Monday robbery at the Bank of America, 3205 Riverside Drive, Danville.
The amount of money taken in the incident has not been released.
Records at the Greensboro Police Department show that Roy also is wanted on an outstanding warrant there, but the charge was not available Saturday.
A spokesman at the Danville Police Department said Saturday that Roy had not been apprehended, and the hunt for him is continuing.
Roy formerly lived in the Martinsville-Henry County area and has relatives here, a Danville police spokesman said Friday.
Henry County Sheriff Lane Perry said his office was not actively involved in the manhunt on Saturday. However, “we will assist” if needed, he said.
Roy had been the pastor of God’s Holy Church in Christ, 128 Fayette St., after the church bought the building in 2006 for $114,000, according to city records.
Four years later, an electrical fire caused extensive damage to the building’s ceiling and roof, according to previous reports.
After the blaze and while repairs were underway, the church held services at Galilee Missionary Baptist Church, according to previous reports.
Michael Penn, pastor of that church, could not be reached for comment Saturday.
The building on Fayette Street was rebuilt, but the congregation lost it in January to foreclosure, according to previous reports.
At the time, Roy began leading a new church — New Life Ministries International — at the Dutch Inn, according to a representative of the hotel and convention center.
In April 2012, New Life Ministries International, with Roy as pastor, was meeting on Franklin Street in Martinsville, according to announcements sent by members of the congregation to the Martinsville Bulletin.
Many of those members either could not be reached Saturday or did not return calls.
Also in April, New Life Ministries hosted the Rev. James Hood, pastor of Ebeneezer Pentecostal Holiness Church, and his congregation.
Reached by telephone Saturday afternoon, Hood declined to comment, saying he had been in the Martinsville-Henry County only for three or four years and did not know Roy well.
According to a release from the Danville Police Department, Roy is known to operate a four-door silver colored 2001 Jaguar with a Virginia tag XKF-2379.
He 5 feet, 11 inches tall and weighs 225 pounds, the release stated.
Police ask anyone with information on Roy’s whereabouts to call 911 or their local law enforcement agency.
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