Gospel Singer Donnie McClurkin sued in New York over sexual abuse allegations

New York: A civil lawsuit has been filed against Grammy-winning gospel singer and pastor Donnie McClurkin, with a man alleging he was sexually abused over several years.

The plaintiff has been identified as Giuseppe Corletto, currently residing in Orlando, Florida. The defendant has been identified as 66-year-old Donnie McClurkin, a Grammy-winning gospel singer and pastor.

According to the statement filed in the lawsuit, the victim met Donnie McClurkin back in 2003, at the Church in Freeport, after reading his book in which he mentioned how he has overcome his sexuality through God, following which the victim also wanted to seek guidance from him about his sexuality.

The plaintiff, who was then 21-year-old, alleged that after consultation the accused who was then 44-year-old helped him and took him under his wing as his personal assistant and as his employee. He also stated that after sometime the pastor took him on a business trip where he started sexually assaulting under the name of sexual guidance.

In a statement Corletto also emphasised that in 2007, Donnie McClurkin forced him to have a sex with him in a California hotel room while they were on a trip, and it was continued during several other trips including Atlantic City, New Jersey, Manhattan, and his home on Long Island.

While saying that “he attempted to quit his job several times through this period but the defendant did not let him do that and manipulated him over and over again by linking his ‘deliverance’ and ‘purpose’ to the pastor.”

However in 2008, the he finally quit his job but remained in Donnie’s life as a helping hand, but despite this “Speak to My Heart” singer continued to sexually abuse him as he raped him in a Florida hotel room in 2012, and in Boston and Niagara Falls in 2013.

But in the same year, McClurkin allegedly sent an email directly to Corletto, in which he apologised to him for being a dirty old man and groping him. He further wrote in a message that “I am the actual epitome of a desperate man, who forced myself and my desire on you despite your continuous denial.”

Despite this, the Grammy-winning gospel singer, still continued to engage in further sexual activities with him in 2015, which caused the plaintiff “injury, emotional pain and suffering, physical pain, emotional distress, celibacy, pain and suffering, and loss of enjoyment of life.”

On Friday, January 2, 2026, when he finally overcame his past trauma, Corletto filed a lawsuit in which he seeks unspecified monetary damages from McClurkin for his sufferings and sexual abuse under the new law “Gender-Motivated Violence Protection Law.”

Responding to which, McClurkin's attorney, Greg Lisi, said that “Corletto’s claims are categorically false and contradicted by the real facts, as Pastor was never involved in any kind of Sexual activities with the plaintiff, or never sexually abused him.”