Jim Bakker, the televangelist who built a Christian broadcasting empire with his first wife, Tammy Faye Bakker, before a financial scandal brought it crashing down, has died at 86.

Bakker died Monday, Oct. 5, his wife, Lori Bakker, announced through the Instagram account for The Jim Bakker Show. His cause of death was not disclosed.

In a statement, Lori described her husband as someone who had devoted 66 years to preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ. She remembered him not only as a pioneer in Christian television, but also as her husband, best friend and a partner who had shared many years of life and ministry with her.

“Jim loved people deeply,” the statement said, adding that he remained committed to his ministry and the Gospel even during his final days.

The family asked for prayers and privacy as they mourned his death, saying that Bakker had “finished his race with faith” and that his voice, vision and legacy would not be forgotten.

The Rise of Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker

Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker founded The PTL Club, short for Praise The Lord, in 1974.

The Christian television program initially operated out of an abandoned furniture store in Charlotte, North Carolina. It eventually grew into a much larger religious broadcasting operation, helped in part by the couple’s embrace of prosperity gospel teachings, which supported the idea that ministers and pastors could enjoy abundant wealth.

As their influence expanded, so did their business empire. Their success included the creation of Heritage USA, a Christian-themed park in South Carolina.

For a time, the Bakkers were among the most recognizable figures in American religious broadcasting. But their growing empire eventually collapsed under allegations of financial wrongdoing and scandal.

The Financial Scandal That Changed Everything

One of the central issues involved the sale of thousands of $1,000 “lifetime memberships” to a luxury hotel that was promoted through the ministry.

Although tens of thousands of memberships were sold, only one 500-room hotel was ever completed. Investigators found that much of the money raised was used for operating expenses by Bakker’s company, while Bakker himself kept $3.4 million, according to The New York Times.

Bakker also faced accusations involving Jessica Hahn, a church secretary who said that he and PTL Club co-host John Wesley Fletcher had drugged and raped her. Bakker maintained that the encounter had been consensual.

He was accused of using $279,000 in ministry funds to pay Hahn to remain silent.

The allegations added another explosive element to the controversy surrounding the Bakkers and helped propel the scandal into the national spotlight.

Conviction and Prison Sentence

On Oct. 4, 1988, Bakker was indicted on 24 federal counts of mail and wire fraud, as well as conspiracy to defraud the public.

After a five-week trial in 1989, he was found guilty on all 24 counts and sentenced to 45 years in prison.

Bakker ultimately served five years.

The conviction marked the dramatic collapse of the religious broadcasting empire he had built with Tammy Faye and permanently changed the course of his career.

Life After Prison

While Bakker was serving his sentence, Tammy Faye divorced him in 1992. She married Roe Messner later that same year.

After his release from prison, Bakker married Lori Beth Graham in 1998. The couple went on to adopt five children, and in 2003, he launched The Jim Bakker Show.

Bakker and Tammy Faye had two children together: son Jay Bakker and daughter Tammy Sue Bakker-Chapman.

Tammy Faye died in 2007 after becoming known for her distinctive personality, makeup and work in Christian television. Her life and relationship with Jim later became the subject of renewed public interest.

Jim Bakker leaves behind a complicated legacy in American religious broadcasting — one shaped by extraordinary success, a multimillion-dollar ministry empire, scandal, a federal conviction and, ultimately, a return to television ministry later in life.