AT 11 YEARS OLD he was already a drug dealer. By 16, he had become a drug lord – calling shots and pocketing big bucks. Despite a good upbringing by well-to-do parents, his desire for money, power and fame saw him living a life of crime, which only changed when he made the conscious decision to welcome Jesus Christ into his life.
Today, suicidal thoughts have long vanished from his mind, and Dimas Salaberrios is a testimony of God’s transforming power. He is a pastor, best-selling author of Street God, leads the largest network (over 5 000) of churches across the United States, and is a television host for Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN).
Salaberrios recently shared aspects of his life with the Sunday Sun and those attending a special youth rally hosted by Healing For The Soul Ministries, headed by Barbadian-born, New York-based minister Judy Linton, at the Church of the Nazarene, Collymore Rock, St Michael.
Hailing from Queens, New York, Salaberrios grew up in a home where there was no lack of love. His father was a jail captain of Rikers Island, the largest jail in New York City, and his mother was a school principal. Salaberrios was the youngest of four children. His innocent years as an adolescent changed when he saw the movie Scarface.
“From that point, I wanted to become a drug dealer. From then, at the age of 11, (during the late 80s) I started selling drugs”, he said.
“I searched New York City to find the biggest drug dealers I could work for. I found the Supreme team, but I soon realised the only way to become a drug boss was to become a murderer, and I did not want to kill anybody.”
Salaberrios left this group, and by 15, had formed his own drug team. He took over an entire block, wheeling and dealing in drugs and bringing in big bucks. At 16, he bade farewell to a formal education, dropped out of school, and dedicated his time to drug crimes.
He would soon learn that crime does not pay. After 13 arrests, he was charged and sentenced to one year at Rikers Island for the sale and possession of crack cocaine. It was the same jail where his dad held the post of jail captain. This pained his family immensely.
After serving time, he tried to find work. When that did not work out, he returned to selling drugs. Again, he was arrested.
“I remembered being handcuffed. As they were trying to transport me to jail, I escaped. I dressed like a woman to escape New York and went to North Carolina. That’s when I became a “street god”.
Salaberrios dominated the drug market in Salem, North Carolina. There he witnessed the murders of 30 of his friends who were part of the organisation. He himself was driven to the brink of suicide, following what he believed was the work of witches in his life.
However, change was on the horizon. One day, at age 22, three elderly women offered to pray for him, and kept praying for him. Prayers led him back to his family, during what was the start of a new life for Salaberrios.
“The power of God flowed over me. I was facing seven years for escaping. I turned myself in. When I went before the judge (in 1995) and she saw the transformation in my life, she said she was going to pardon me because she liked the person I had become. Ever since then, I never let her down.”
Salaberrios began attending church and was soon leading many people to Christ. He met Barbadian-born pastor Reverend Paul Leacock, who was pastoring the Great Allen Cathedral in Queens, New York. Leacock taught him to preach and took him on prison visits.
Before long, Salaberrios was hitting the streets around 11 p.m. nightly, preaching Christ to “the lost”. He also preached to over 90 000 in New York City during a Billy Graham crusade in 2003.
As his life started to turn for the better, he met Tiffany, who was introduced to him by Leacock. Today, they are the parents of three daughters, including Salaberrios’ 23-year-old daughter from a previous relationship.
“I’ve come to realise that my purpose in life is to win persons to Jesus Christ,” Salaberrios said.
While here, he joined with Healing For The Soul Ministries and shared his testimony with inmates at Dodds, Her Majesty Prison.
Looking back, he said, “I broke my parents’ heart. I hurt them so much. I’m glad my mother was able to see me change.” The six-foot six-inch preacher of Infinity Bible Church in Bronx, New York, said his mum died of cancer in March 2011, but not before choosing him to take care of her in her later years.
As this former model shares his testimony, Salaberrios is quick to tell his listeners that the love for money, power and fame can never compare to the fulfilment found in serving Jesus Christ. (CH)
