advertisement

Mancow alleges in police report that ex-Harvest Bible pastor asked him to hire hitman

Wilmette police late Wednesday afternoon released a report that details allegations from two former members of Rolling Meadows-based Harvest Bible Chapel that then-pastor James MacDonald solicited each of them to find him a hitman.

The report states the investigation "revealed no chargeable criminal offenses within Wilmette's jurisdiction," though the matter has been referred to another unnamed jurisdiction for "potential further criminal investigation."

The report further states that a Wilmette detective spoke to both the FBI and the IRS, neither of which expressed an interest in getting involved.

MacDonald did not respond to phone calls or a text message seeking comment.

The allegations in the heavily redacted report, which was obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request, were detailed in a podcast that WLS radio personality Mancow Muller - a former friend and now staunch critic of MacDonald - posted Monday evening. Muller confirmed Wednesday to the Daily Herald that he filed the police report, from which his name also is redacted.

Muller, who lives in Wilmette, told police he did not alert authorities for six months until he and a second complainant - who waited four years to speak to police - discussed MacDonald while recording Muller's podcast a week ago in the WLS studio.

The allegations were first reported Monday morning by Christian blogger Julie Roys and on Wednesday afternoon by Patch.com, whose reporter, Mark Konkol, works on Muller's show and asked questions as part of the podcast.

According to the report, Muller told police that, in a telephone conversation in December, MacDonald "asked (him) if (he) could find him a hitman." It says MacDonald did not disclose a target. The report also states that MacDonald had asked Muller to do so once before.

Another unnamed person police contacted as a result of Muller's complaint said MacDonald had made a similar overture to him in 2015 while eating breakfast with him and others during a motorcycle trip in Indiana.

"MacDonald leaned over and asked (him) if (he) would kill (redacted)," and "MacDonald said he would help move the body."

The target of the alleged hit was redacted from the report.

Police asked both men why they didn't call police immediately.

Muller's response on his podcast was that he didn't take the request seriously the first time but did the second time. When asked that question during the taping of the podcast, Muller said he was afraid of MacDonald.

The church MacDonald founded three decades ago fired him in February after Muller aired a recording of MacDonald discussing putting child pornography on the computer of a Christian magazine editor.

Muller on Wednesday night had this to say about lodging the police report: "My only goal with all of this was to make sure that other flocks don't get fleeced when (MacDonald) floats downstream to the next parish."

Article Comments
Guidelines: Keep it civil and on topic; no profanity, vulgarity, slurs or personal attacks. People who harass others or joke about tragedies will be blocked. If a comment violates these standards or our terms of service, click the "flag" link in the lower-right corner of the comment box. To find our more, read our FAQ.