Televangelist Jim Bakker dead at 86

Jim Bakker, the televangelist, has died at 86 years old, his widow announced on Monday. Bakker rose to fame with the "The PTL Club" TV show before he admitted to a sexual encounter with his church secretary and was convicted of fraud.

“It is with a broken heart that I share that my beloved husband, Jim Bakker, went home to be with the Lord this evening,” Lori Bakker, Jim's second wife, said in a statement. "For 66 years, Jim gave his life to preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He was a pioneer of Christian television, but to me, he was my husband, my best friend, and the man I was honored to walk beside through so many seasons of life and ministry."

"Jim loved people deeply. He loved this ministry, and he loved the friends and partners who stood with him throughout the years. Even in his final days, his heart was still for the work of God and for the Gospel to continue reaching the world," she added in the statement. His cause of death is not clear.

Bakker attended North Central Bible College in Minneapolis after growing up in Michigan. He met his first wife, Tammy Faye, in college and dropped out to pursue his traveling ministry. According to his website, Bakker felt “divinely inspired” to use television to spread the message of the gospel and joined Pat Robertson’s Christian Broadcasting Network in the 1960s. After eight years, he left the network and then founded "The PTL Club," a Christian television show that he co-hosted with his wife.

After building an empire that included the show, the Heritage USA theme park, and other successes, it all came crashing down when it was revealed that he paid $279,000 to his church secretary, Jessica Hahn, after she accused him of raping her. He admitted to having a sexual encounter with Hahn but claimed that it was consensual, while she claimed it was rape.

He shortly after resigned from PTL, and then Jerry Falwell took over the network. Bakker was later found guilty of 24 counts of fraud and sentenced to 45 years in prison. After just five years, he got out on parole. Tammy, his first wife, died of cancer in 2007 after they divorced in 1992.

In 1998, he married his second wife, Lori Graham. They started a television ministry in 2003 called "The Jim Bakker Show."

“Our family is grieving and we ask for your prayers and privacy during this time. Jim finished his race with faith. His voice, his vision, and his legacy will never be forgotten," Lori added in the statement.