Father Jesus turned his Gulfport home into a castle. Why the city just condemned it.
The Gulfport home of Father Jesus has been condemned.
Gulfport police arrived at the property on Wednesday to clear out residents and charge Father Jesus with operating a business without a license, as well as building code violations, fire code violations, and general unsafe conditions. Jesus was running a boarding house in the home, city officials said.
Gulfport Police Department spokesman Sgt. Jason DuCré said police had gone to the house to execute the warrant for the violations.
Gulfport communications and marketing officer Jase Payne said the code violations included:
- Gulfport Zoning Ordinance Room House Boarding
- International Residential Code
- Violation of 101 Life Safety Code
- Violation of Privilege Tax Provisions
Fire code violations included issues with “electrical equipment, wiring and hazards.”
“Due to the nature of the violations, the occupants ... were required to leave the premises,” Payne said.
Payne said Father Jesus had been processed and released on his own recognizance.
On Tuesday, Gulfport police confirmed a 40-year-old man had been found dead in his room inside the castle. DuCré said there is no police investigation into the death, which Harrison County Coroner Brian Switzer said was not suspicious.
In September 2017, Harold Ray Laster, Jr. legally changed his name to Father Jesus. The following spring, he wanted to build a church that would look like a castle on Alabama Avenue, for his religion “The Saints of the Most High.” But the Gufport Planning Commission denied his zoning request.
In 2020, Father Jesus secured permits from the city to construct a castle facade of plywood for his house on 11th Street. He told the Sun Herald he constructed two-story battlements, not attached to the house, so that he could look out at the Mississippi Sound.
At the time, the Sun Herald reported that the city had inspected the facade multiple times and determined it was up to code.
“If you want your house to look like a castle and live in the city of Gulfport, you have a right to do it,” Urban Development Director Greg Pietrangelo said. “ . . . We’re not the pretty police.”
On Thursday morning, an orange notice was stapled to the faded flag of Israel hanging next to the structure’s door.
“Danger — Keep Out,” it said. “THIS BUILDING IS UNSAFE AND ITS USE or OCCUPANCY HAS BEEN PROHIBITED BY THE BUILDING OFFICIAL.”
Two people knocked on the front door of the condemned home Thursday morning. No one answered, and the men left.
This story was originally published December 23, 2021 at 12:58 PM.
