MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Miami Gardens pastor Eric Readon has been released from jail after serving nearly a year behind bars in the elderly exploitation case involving retired postal worker Edward Fuller, a case first exposed in a series of Local 10 News investigations.
Readon’s release comes as New Beginning Missionary Baptist Church is publicly welcoming him back.
A flyer circulating online advertises a “Readon Returns” worship service scheduled for Sunday from 8:45 a.m. to 10 a.m. at 2801 NW 170th St. in Miami Gardens. The flyer features Readon in a suit alongside the words “Readon Returns” and identifies him as “Pastor Eric Readon.”
Court records show Readon pleaded guilty in June 2025 to exploitation of an elderly person after prosecutors accused him of illegally taking control of Fuller’s home and selling it without Fuller realizing what had happened. Fuller, who was in his late 70s at the time the investigation began, had trusted Readon as a pastor and spiritual adviser.
The case drew widespread attention after Local 10 News began investigating allegations that Fuller had effectively lost ownership of his longtime home while under Readon’s influence.
Reporting over several years detailed allegations that documents transferring the property had been signed and that the home was later sold, leaving Fuller without the house he believed he still owned.
As part of a negotiated plea agreement, Readon was sentenced to 364 days in jail, followed by 15 years of probation. He was also ordered to pay $180,000 in restitution to Fuller.
Readon surrendered on July 15, 2025, to begin serving the sentence. Because jail inmates can receive credit for time served and gain-time reductions, his release at this point, after serving 303 days of a 364-day sentence, is consistent with the sentence imposed.
During earlier court proceedings, prosecutors argued that Readon used his position of trust to financially exploit Fuller. Readon later attempted to withdraw his guilty plea, claiming his attorney pressured him into accepting the deal and failed to properly prepare the case for trial.
That effort was rejected by Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Christine Hernández, who ruled that the evidence showed Readon knowingly and voluntarily accepted the plea agreement. Hernández pointed to extensive communication between Readon and his attorney before the plea and said the evidence did not support claims that he had been forced into the deal.
The judge also noted that Readon told the court during his plea hearing that he understood the agreement and that no one had threatened or pressured him into taking it.
Now, following his release, Readon appears poised to return to ministry.
The church flyer promoting Sunday’s service lists the Northwest 170th Street address associated with New Beginning Missionary Baptist Church in Miami Gardens and encourages worshippers to attend the event marking Readon’s return.
It remains unclear what formal role Readon will have at the church moving forward or whether any conditions of his probation restrict his activities. It is also unclear how much of the court-ordered restitution to Fuller has been paid.
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