Bishop Noel Jones Alleged to Have Fathered 'X Factor' Star's Child
California megachurch pastor Bishop Noel Jones, previously said to be engaged to actress LisaRaye McCoy, has now been linked to another female celebrity who reportedly claimed that the City of Refuge Church leader is the father of her one-year-old child.
After RadarOnline reported that former "X Factor" U.S. contestant Stacy Francis, 42, had told a reporter that the father of her baby son was minister Jones, the aspiring singer has now backtracked on those claims, according to the Examiner.
Francis reportedly issued the following statement June 25 on Twitter, before eventually deleting it:
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"For the past 3 days, I have tried to digest the situation and what to say. I am simply at a loss for words. I realized that the media is always looking for a story and disregards that there are real lives involved. It was reported that I admitted to an affair with a Bishop. That this NOT true. I am not going to defend myself. Or get involved in gossip. But since everyone keeps asking me about it. I wanted to make it very clear. I was not interviewed by anyone and never made any such admission. That is all I want to say about it."
While Francis is denying she ever told RadarOnline about having an affair with Jones, RadarOnline claims to have the former "X Factor" contestant on tape identifying the minister as the father of her child.
The original report stems from an "exclusive" RadarOnline published on June 21, in which Francis is quoted as telling the entertainment publication, "I love him very much and I am not ashamed of my baby. Our baby."
"Him," according to RadarOnline was 62-year-old Jones. The publication cited an "inside" source to support the claim.
"An insider explains that Stacy was going through a divorce from her husband and the father of her first child, Darwin Kyle Hayes, when she had an affair with the Bishop -- resulting in her second child, Anastasia Noelle Jones," according to the publication.
The megachurch pastor has not made any public comments on the recent allegations related to Francis. According to his Twitter updates, Jones is currently in South Africa participating in the "Night of Inspiration" Conference.
Jones was rumored last year to be in a serious relationship with actress LisaRaye McCoy with the two reportedly even considering marriage. Those claims were never confirmed, although McCoy indicated that the two might have been dating.
Jones, whose sister is entertainer and iconic model Grace Jones, leads City of Refuge Church in Gardena, Calif., and its 17,000 members. Currently unmarried, Jones has three children.
