Former Grace professor Dr. Mark Soto testified during day five of his trial Monday that he was tired and fed up when he sent an email to an Ohio attorney.

After the prosecution rested its case, Soto took the stand in his own defense.

Soto’s attorney, Scott Lennox, asked him about the emails he sent to David Baker, the Ohio attorney.

Soto was working with Baker to make a movie about martial arts instructor Kevin Bronson’s life. Baker testified earlier that he only did so under fear for his life.

Prosecutors showed the jury emails that Soto sent Baker that warned of Baker’s lack of progress getting work done for the movie. The emails warned that “those watching us are not happy with the lack of progress.”

“Those watching” referred to the Aryan Brotherhood Council, which wanted the movie made, according to testimony.

Soto said that at the time of the email, he was fed up with Bronson, fed up with Baker not doing anything and tired and just wanted it to be done, so he sent the email. He added that the gang’s supposed involvement in the movie was just repeating what Bronson said.

Soto said he first met Bronson on Easter 1998, when Bronson presented himself as someone who wanted to learn about Jesus Christ.

Soto began meeting with Bronson, and would eventually meet with Bronson’s father, Sam Bailin. Bailin was a wealthy businessman who insisted on paying Soto for his services, Soto said. Soto said he was not used to taking money as he usually counsels people for free as a pastor, but Bronson’s father was happy.

Bronson had a hard time staying out of trouble with the law, and Soto made many trips to the jail to meet with Bronson. He said Bronson would call him with all sorts of demands, usually to contact his father. After Bronson’s father died in 2008, he turned to Soto for money and support.

While wanting to see the best for Bronson, Soto testified that on two occasions he wrote a judge to argue for Bronson’s bond to be revoked when he didn’t follow the rules he set out.

Soto said they have a term for people like Bronson in ministry circles. “Either a ‘very independent person’ or a ‘very draining person.’ Kevin fit both,” he said.

Soto said he stuck with Bronson so long for two reasons: One, because his religious faith teaches him that no one is beyond redemption; and he promised Bronson’s father he wouldn’t give up on him.

Soto said he saw his first glimpse of Bronson’s anger when he was called to Bronson’s home during a dispute with Bronson’s then-wife Candice. When Soto told Bronson he shouldn’t treat his wife like that, Bronson took a martial arts stance. Soto just stared him down, he said.

“Bronson said I was the only man to see that and live,” he said.

Around 2008 and 2009, Bronson said he was contacted by movie producers about making a motion picture about his path to Christianity.

At that point, Bronson’s stories about the Aryan Brotherhood became more detailed and more “fantastical,” Soto said. “I heard details I had never heard before.”

As the movie deal pushed forward, Bronson kept finding ways to end up behind bars. Yet he called Soto many times from the jail demanding he make plans for the movie.

Soto said Bronson made it clear to him that everyone who was under the cloud would die if the movie wasn’t produced. The story Bronson told others was the Brotherhood wanted the movie to be made and was willing to torture people's families if it wasn’t. Soto denied any affiliation with the Aryan Brotherhood, and said he never had a direct line to “Sky,” as Bronson said earlier.

Soto said he purchased four handguns and obtained a concealed carry license. He gave the other guns to family members. Soto said he didn’t necessarily believe Bronson’s claims but didn’t want to take chances with his family’s life on the line.  

Eventually, Soto formed a company with Bronson and Christ Covenant Church pastor Nate McLaurin. The company, Young Dragon Enterprises, was formed to control the funds for the ,movie. However, the money was never made and the money kept going to other things.

Soto said the only money he was ever paid from the company was a $5,000 reimbursement for money he paid out of his own pocket to support Bronson’s living expenses and three trips to California for Bronson and Baker to meet with movie producers.

Soto testified during the trial that he heard the details of the threat made on McLaurin’s life. On Jan. 2 2013, McLaurin said he was alerted by Soto that bikers were coming to kill his family. Soto said he remembered there being a threat, but said the threat was against all three.

“If one of us messed up, we were all in trouble,” he said.

Soto said he sat up with a gun and waited for the men as well. No one ever came to any residence.

The trial is scheduled to continue today with the prosecutor’s cross-examination of Soto.