Prosecutors said Rev. Richard Shahan attempted to flee to Europe to marry his boyfriend. (JEFFERSON COUNTY JAIL)
Prosecutors say Rev. Richard Lee Shahan, formerly of Birmingham’s First Baptist Church, had plans to flee to Europe to marry his boyfriend. The minister has been charged with murdering his wife, Karen Louise Shahan.
The Alabama pastor who is accused of stabbing his wife to death allegedly had a replacement in mind.
Jefferson County prosecutors say Rev. Richard Lee Shahan attempted to flee the country on New Year’s Day and marry his boyfriend.
Shahan was cornered by Homeland Security as he tried to board a flight to Frankfurt, Germany, from a Nashville airport. He was reportedly making his way to Kazakhstan via Germany and had plans to eventually settle down in the United Kingdom.
“He planned to become a citizen there and begin a new life with his boyfriend… who he intended to marry,” prosecutor Leigh Gwathney told AL.com. “He had no intention of ever returning to the United States. He had no home to return to and he had said his goodbyes to his family.”
At the time of his arrest, Shahan was in possession of $27,000 in dollars, pounds, euros, and Kazakhstani currency.
But the 53-year-old minister’s lawyers deny claims that their client was a “fugitive from justice.” Defense attorney John Lentine said that Shahan had been planning a three-year-mission trip to Frankfurt to work with Bible Mission International.
“He planned to become a citizen there and begin a new life with his boyfriend… who he intended to marry,” prosecutor Leigh Gwathney told AL.com. “He had no intention of ever returning to the United States. He had no home to return to and he had said his goodbyes to his family.”
At the time of his arrest, Shahan was in possession of $27,000 in dollars, pounds, euros, and Kazakhstani currency.
But the 53-year-old minister’s lawyers deny claims that their client was a “fugitive from justice.” Defense attorney John Lentine said that Shahan had been planning a three-year-mission trip to Frankfurt to work with Bible Mission International.
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SOURCE: New York Daily News
Carol Kuruvilla
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