Ex-wife Testifies in Broward Molestation Trial of Youth Mentor

By Rafael Olmeda
Sun Sentinel
April 2, 2014

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/broward/fort-lauderdale/fl-jeffery-london-trial-continued-20140402,0,3640843.story

[with video]

The former wife of a youth mentor accused of repeatedly molesting teenage boys in his care took the stand on Wednesday, telling a Broward jury that she once walked in on her husband and one of his accusers.

Aretha Wimberly, a Fort Lauderdale code enforcement officer, was married to Jeffery London from 2000 until 2003, but she testified that she was always uncomfortable with the fact that her husband kept taking charge of teenage boys who lived with them for months at a time.

Wimberly said she married London in 2000 and moved into his home in Coral Springs, not knowing at the time that the home was purchased by another person who intended for London to use it to house teenage boys with no place else to go. The boys testified that they looked to London as a father figure.

London, who later moved to Lauderdale Lakes, is charged with sexual battery and molestation of four victims. Three others testified he did the same thing to them, but they are not included in the formal charges. London, 50, faces life in prison if convicted.

Wimberly said she was concerned about the boys because she had a young daughter and did not want her growing up with troubled boys who were not her siblings.

But she said she never suspected any inappropriate behavior until one morning when she returned to the house to find her bedroom door locked.

"I got the key and opened the door," she said. "He was in the bed under the covers with [a 16-year-old boy]."

While Wimberly admitted she didn't see anything explicit that day, she was immediately troubled by the scene.

"I don't know any boys who get in the bed under the covers to watch cartoons with their dad," she said.

She said she made the boy leave the bedroom and questioned her husband about it. He told her nothing inappropriate was happening, she said. The boy told the same story.

"It was my opinion that the boys did not have a life that allowed them to have a lot of material things," Wimberly said. "They were convinced he was all they had, as far as someone who really cared about them. And he pretty much made sure no one else had any influence with them."

London worked with the youth members of the Bible Church of God in Fort Lauderdale and later worked as dean of students at Eagle Charter Academy in Fort Lauderdale. He frequently opened his home to troubled teens, but prosecutors now say that his generosity masked a sexual predator.

Witness after witness testified Monday and Tuesday that London lured them into multiple sexual encounters, rewarding them with cash, games and clothes, and swearing them to silence.

Prosecutors Justin Griffis and Imabel Ocasio guided the accusers through sometimes emotional testimony. One alleged victim left the stand Tuesday sobbing uncontrollably after declaring that despite the accusations, he still viewed London as a father figure. "I still love him," the man said.

Through her questions, defense lawyer Lourdes Gonzalez has challenged the witnesses about why they never reported the abuse until years later. London was arrested in 2012. Gonzalez has also asked each alleged victim about whether they have filed civil lawsuits against London. One case is pending, though it is not clear how many accusers are part of it.

Ex-wife Wimberly said despite the teens' affection for London, he was a poor guardian, allowing them to stay out of school so often that they would get letters warning they would not be promoted to the next grade if they missed any more days.

"He really was having them not live on the streets, but not much more," Wimberly said.

The trial is scheduled to resume Thursday afternoon before Broward Circuit Judge Michael Usan.

raolmeda@tribune.com, 954-356-4457, Twitter @SSCourts