UPDATE: Rev. Jerome Milton of the Open Door Bible Church pleaded guilty Friday (August 12th) afternoon. He was given a sentence of 10 years probation and will also serve 180 days in the Smith County Jail.

We've been following the unfortunate case of Tyler pastor Jerome Milton, who stands accused of several charges including theft and money laundering. While the pastor and former coach has denied these allegations, he will soon have his day in court.

The 66-year-old is the pastor for the Open Door Bible Church

Milton was first arrested last year in October and police have accused him of gaining power of attorney over an elderly couple's finances and continuously used the money on his own behalf. The elderly man’s bank card was allegedly used for payments of Milton’s loan on a 2009 Chevrolet Suburban, and the woman’s bank card was used for payments of Milton’s loan on a 2011 Chevrolet Suburban.

Cash was withdrawn from March through July of 2021 for a total of $3,800 according to an arrest affidavit Police claim Milton initially denied using the cards to make car payments but when the transactions were shown to Milton he had no explanation.

Milton Was Indicted Again In July 2022 On New Charges

After being indicted in December of 2021 for the alleged theft against that elderly couple, Milton was indicted again in July on two counts of theft and one count of money laundering. The latest indictment alleges that the crime was conducted back in February of 2017. The money laundering indictment states Milton transferred the proceeds of theft, credit card abuse and forgery between bank accounts.

Milton Will Go To Trial On August 15th. In The Video Interview Below, Milton Tells His Side Of The Story.

According to KLTV, on Thursday, Judge Austin Reeve Jackson decided to leave the date as scheduled after hearing arguments from Jerome Milton’s attorney and the state as Milton’s attorney argued that they would not be ready for Aug. 15 and needed another month’s time. The state said in court they were ready to proceed, as they had met with all witnesses. Jackson told the state they would need to make witness statement and recordings available to Milton’s attorney.