Asheville trial: NC church linked to gay beating; members fundraise for GOP gov. hopeful

ASHEVILLE - Republican gubernatorial candidate Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson held a fundraiser with a Western North Carolina church whose members are facing trial in Buncombe County on charges of beating a fellow member to get out his "homosexual demons."

Robinson, a right-wing candidate known for extreme remarks, including recently telling members of an eastern North Carolina church that “some folks need killin’," was scheduled for a July 9 fundraiser hosted by four leaders of the church and alleged cult Word of Faith Fellowship.

The Citizen Times reached out July 11 to Robinson's campaign to ask about the fundraiser and if he had any reservations about receiving support from the highly controversial Rutherford County-based Word of Faith. For years the church has been accused of criminal behavior that included using slave labor and sexual and physical abuse of children, something leaders of the secretive group have denied.

In 2004, church leader Jane Whaley was convicted of misdemeanor assault, a charge overturned after five years of appeals . The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of N.C. based in Asheville prosecuted four members for fraudulent business activities, closing the investigation in 2019 on the members, three of whom were listed as a pastor or minister.

Five members were charged with kidnapping and assault after Matthew Fenner told police in 2013 that he was beaten for hours to "break me free of the homosexual 'demons,'" the Associated Press reported.

The cases faced setbacks, including juror contempt and a mistrial, and were moved to Buncombe County in 2017 and 2022.

Of those, the case against Adam Bartley, Justin Covington, Brooke McFadden Covington and Robert Walker was still open, according to court files reviewed July 11 by the Citizen Times. There was no file for Sarah Anderson, who had also been charged. One reason for the absence of documentation in such instances can be that the charge was expunged. That is a process in which a charge is legally erased and its documentation destroyed.

The files showed Bartley and Walker as represented by Asheville attorney Thomas Amburgey − and another Asheville lawyer, Brian Gulden, as representing Justin Covington. Noelle Tin of Charlotte was listed as Brooke McFadden's lawyer. The Citizen Times reached out to all three attorneys.

The last action taken in the cases was Brooke McFadden Covington's 2022 venue transfer to Buncombe. Prior to that the prosecution moved in 2020 to combine the trials into one. While the proceedings are now in Buncombe the case is being prosecuted by Rutherford District Attorney Ted Bell. The Citizen Times reached out to Bell to ask about the status of the legal proceedings, which have now stretched on for seven years. A staff member said Bell was out of the country on vacation.

Under former DA Brad Greenway, two assistant district attorneys who were Word of Faith members derailed criminal investigations into the church, ex-sect members told the Associated Press. After the AP story was published the assistant prosecutors, who were working under DA David Learner in a different part of WNC, were let go, with Learner asking the State Bureau of Investigation to open an inquiry.

A campaign spokesperson for the Democratic gubernatorial campaign of N.C. Attorney General Josh Stein criticized GOP candidate Robinson, saying it was "disturbing, but unsurprising," that he would raise money from Word of Faith.

“Just last Sunday, he said, ‘Some people need killing.’ Mark Robinson promotes hate and violence. He’s too extreme and dangerous to be governor," said spokesperson Morgan Hopkins.

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Joel Burgess has lived in WNC for more than 20 years, covering politics, government and other news. He's written award-winning stories on topics ranging from gerrymandering to police use of force. Got a tip? Contact Burgess at jburgess@citizentimes.com, 828-713-1095 or on Twitter @AVLreporter. Please help support this type of journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times.

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Asheville trial: NC church linked to gay beating; members fundraise for GOP gov. hopeful