The other individuals named in the complaint are Alondra Ocampo, Azalea Rangel Melendez, and Susana Medina Oaxaca, all of whom are affiliated with La Luz Del Mundo. I see your beautiful faces because you are the children of God., Per the AP, near the end of the call, he asked his followers to raise their hands and their voices to God and repeat after him: I promise you, Lord, that whatever the suffering, I will never abandon you. Loyalists, like 49-year-old Sara Pozos, told the AP that the La Luz Del Mundo leaders imprisonment has united the church and changed it for the better., Meanwhile, five women, known as Jane Does, who said Garca sexually abused them between 2015 and 2019, filed a civil lawsuit in the Los Angeles County Superior Court, seeking damages against the church. As for their professional standing, while Alma allegedly serves as a social worker, Adoram has been linked to the Mexican soccer promotional league. Her bail was originally set at $5 million. 2023-01-18T22:52:45.963Z, Police search a container in Sheung Shui and reveal it as a Pai Gow gambling stall As of writing, the case is still being deliberated in a court of law. In 2014, he succeeded his father as the new leader AKA the Apostle of the La Luz del Mundo. Naasn was revered among his church community, but things came crashing down around 2019 when he and two of his associates, Susana Medina Oaxaca and Alondra Ocampo, came under the polices radar. In 2018, Attorney General Becerracharged the operators of Rainbow Bright, a California adult residential and childcare company, with 59 criminal counts for alleged human trafficking and other alleged labor-related violations. After the imprisonment of her husband, she has already tried to protect her kids from protecting them from any particular problems they are supposed to face for whatever their father did with another woman. Aug. 21, 202200:24. In the true-crime docuseries, several survivors share their stories of abuse they have suffered at the hands of the powerful religious groups successive leaders, known as the apostles. In 2019, the churchs head, Naasn Joaqun Garca, faced 36 charges, including human trafficking, rape, child pornography, and forcible oral copulation of a minor, according to the Los Angeles Times. 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Contact: (916) 210-6000, agpressoffice@doj.ca.gov, State of California Department of Justice, Consumer Protection and Economic Opportunity, California Justice Information Services (CJIS), helped bring downthe worlds largest online brothel, push for the passage of the federal Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act, Attorney General Becerra Announces Arrest of Naasn Joaqu. Oaxaca pleaded guilty to one count of assault likely to cause great bodily injury in June. Check Out Here, Will You Get Another Stimulus Payment in 2023? They decided to stay away in a local house and California, the familys residence, for a long time. During services, the women sit to the right and men to the left. The suit was filed by five women who - under the pseudonym Jane Doe - were identified as victims in the original criminal charges against him. Many lifted their fists. In some cities, people tithe more than 10% of their monthly income to the church. "The apostle always shows determination to move forward," said Phares Ruiz, who traveled from El Salvador to attend the Holy Supper. There are apparently video clips of them engaging in such atrocious acts, some of which even go as far as to include extreme incest. In denying a defense motion to dismiss the case, a judge said Garca used religion as invisible handcuffs to exploit his victims. Naason Joaquin Garcia, the leader of a Mexico-based evangelical church with a worldwide membership of more than 1 million appeared for a bail review hearing in Los Angeles Superior Court on July 15, 2019. Ocampo pleaded guilty in 2020 to counts 19, 20, 21, and 33. The attorney general of California, Xavier Becerra, has even said that he is a madman. The leader, of the Church of Light, today behind bars of a prison in California, is accused, along with three accomplices, of multiple crimes. According to the suit, the victims said they were routinely coerced since they were children to believe that Garcas wishes were direct orders from God and that if they didnt obey, it would lead to catastrophic consequences including, but not limited to, eternal damnation, unspeakable tragedy, infertility, and countless other harms.. Megachurch leader Naason Joaquin Garcia has been sentenced to 16 years and eight months in prison. We will hold you accountable if you break the law, said Attorney General Bonta. Castillo, a recently married woman of 25, told AP the church advises members how "to lead a decent life," in which women may not drink alcohol or go out on frequent dates. There are about 1 million U.S. members. As a documentary series that lives up to its title in every way imaginable, HBOs Unveiled: Surviving La Luz Del Mundo can only be described as equal parts Garca and Oaxaca were arrested at the Los Angeles International Airport upon arrival into the United States and Ocampo was also arrested separately in Los Angeles County. Ahead of the baptism, in a ritual known as "the revivals," children undergo days of prayer and fasting inside a temple. Church youth group leader Alondra Ocampo, who previously pleaded guilty to abusing the girls, was charged with directing teenage girls in skimpy outfits to perform flirty dances for Garca. On June 3, 2019, Naasn, Susana, and Alondra landed in a private jet at the Los Angeles International Airport, where they were arrested. And Naason Joaquin, whose followers call the "Apostle of Jesus Christ" and "Servant of God," signed a controversial agreement with the California District Attorney's Office This, as explained at the time by the prosecutor in charge of the case, because there was a suspicion that his followers would seek to pay the fine. Similar accusations emerged in September last year, so the trial ended up being rescheduled for May 2022. On Sept. 8 a lawsuit was filed in California against Joaqun Garca and four church members alleged to be complicit in the sex abuse. 13,512 Alert: Alzheimer's-Like Just on March 21, the Church of the Light of the World demanded Nahson's immediate release, after his defense filed a motion claiming that the California Prosecutor's Office conducted incriminating evidence against him. 2023-01-18T23:04:35.147Z, An 'angel' with artificial intelligence tracks clues to find the disappeared in Mexico "It has been a very difficult issue, of course, for him and for us," she added. (Photo by ULISES RUIZ / AFP via Getty Images), Multiple witnesses came forward during in investigation launched in 2018 by the California Department of Justices Special Prosecutions Section. The latter was the leader of the La Please enter valid email address to continue. 2023-01-18T22:10:34.237Z, grew up in an abusive home and now cares for others with the same trauma: "When there is violence in the family, the transparent child is also a victim" | Israel today If you see something, report it and we will vigorously pursue justice.. Garcia is currently in custody in lieu of $50 million bail and co- defendant Alondra Ocampo, 36, is being held on $25 million bail. The head of the multinational church La Luz del Mundo was sentenced to 16 years and 8 months in prison Wednesday after pleading guilty to several sexual assault charges. 13-year-old girl leads Nebraska troopers on 100-mph chase. 2023-01-18T23:16:57.231Z, Thiago from 'Big Brother' asked for an exchange thermos: he received criticism and the memes exploded Kevin McCarthy is a famous politician and his scandal love life, Stimulus Check-In January 2023: Find Out More Updates, Will SSI Get A Fourth Stimulus Check? 2023-01-18T22:22:50.746Z, Netflix presents a very varied and especially humorous cinematographic menu for 2023 The church's doctrine is learned from the cradle. "Knowing that these abuses took place there, in my happy place, in my safe place, is horrible," she said. 2023-01-18T22:28:34.565Z, These are the searches Brian Walshe did on Google before and after he killed his wife Ana Walshe, according to prosecutors Most teachings translate into something quotidian. 2023-01-18T22:58:35.027Z, Last public meeting before the strike for Borne and Dussopt Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. Another neighborhood resident, Sailem Castillo, also said she was upbeat despite Joaqun Garca's imprisonment. 2023-01-18T21:29:11.792Z. Many organization leaders, including Susana and Alondra, were accused of being the perpetrators. Only in September 2020 did the man plead not guilty to the crimes charged against him. Hes serving a nearly 17-year sentence in Los Angeles on sex abuse charges. The lawsuit also includes Garcia's accomplices and facilitators, Alondra Ocampo and Susana Oaxaca, two members of La Luz del Mundo who were also sentenced to prison for helping them abuse the victims. The church's media relations office claims there is no crime in the area. So far he remains imprisoned in the United States. Naasn Joaqun Garcia was a church leader for a very long time and was a good and famous personality who used to perform good deeds but later on when the actual truth got revealed in 2019, he was directly charged with 20 rape cases there together, and after the investigation by the police officers, proper evidence got to reveal that he was related to these 20 women and salted the women sexually and raped them more than once. Sentencing is currently scheduled for Wednesday, June 8 at 8:30 a.m. Todays conviction sends a clear message that sexual exploitation is never acceptable in California. She would target girls and bring them into his inner fold. 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