Just days earlier than his long-awaited trial was set to begin, La Luz del Mundo leader Naason Joaquin Garcia pleaded guilty Friday to sexually abusing women from his congregation, a shocking reversal for a person who followers imagine is an “apostle” appointed by God.
Originally dealing with 36 charges, Garcia on the final minute took a plea deal that referred to as for him to admit to three counts, the state lawyer basic’s workplace introduced Friday: two counts of forcible oral copulation involving minors and one rely of a lewd act upon a toddler who was 15 years outdated.
“Today’s conviction sends a clear message that sexual exploitation is never acceptable in California. We will hold you accountable if you break the law,” Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta mentioned in a news launch issued late Friday afternoon.
Garcia, he mentioned, abused his authority to “take advantage of children,” whereas counting on his underlings “to groom congregants for the purposes of sexual assault.”
“Today’s conviction can never undo the harm,” Bonta declared, “but it will help protect future generations.”
Garcia, 53, had publicly maintained his innocence for years. His surprising plea change got here throughout an unannounced listening to Friday, which was solely disclosed after the very fact in a news launch.
Garcia’s legal professionals didn’t instantly return requests for remark; a church spokesman had no speedy remark.
Garcia has been in jail for almost three years awaiting trial, since state prosecutors charged him with abusing women who belonged to his Mexico-based megachurch. They additionally alleged the church was concerned in a prolonged cover-up of the sexual misconduct.
Despite the huge publicity and lurid charges, Garcia had maintained nearly common help inside the church. When he was arrested, lots of the devoted flocked to church buildings within the denomination’s hometown of Guadalajara, but in addition in Los Angeles and different cities.
They prayed, they talked to journalists, they protested their leader’s innocence. Said parishioner Robert Pelegreen on the time: “When David was going to fight Goliath, it looked like he was going to lose. God has his plan.”
After a number of delays, Garcia’s trial was supposed to begin with jury choice Monday earlier than Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Ronald S. Coen. After Friday’s surprising plea, he’ll as an alternative face sentencing Wednesday.
The California lawyer basic’s workplace, which is dealing with the case, additionally had accused Garcia of coercing underlings to recruit younger women for him to sexually abuse. Three feminine church members even have been charged with numerous offenses. One stays on the run, whereas one other has agreed to testify towards Garcia, saying she herself was abused.
Church member Alondra Ocampo was anticipated to testify towards him. She has pleaded guilty to 4 counts as a part of a deal in 2020. She will likely be sentenced at a later date. She was accused of grooming teenage women for Garcia’s sexual pleasure.
Her lawyer beforehand advised The Times that Ocampo herself suffered years of sexual abuse within the church when she was a minor.
Another codefendant, Susana Medina Oaxaca, who was Garcia’s former assistant, pleaded guilty Friday to a cost of assault seemingly to trigger nice bodily harm, Bonta’s workplace mentioned.
Authorities have but to find the third girl, Azalea Rangel Melendez.
The alleged crimes dedicated by Garcia occurred between 2015 and 2019. The case towards him got here on account of a tip in 2018 to a U.S. Justice Department web site that was created to assist folks report abuse by clergy.
It is unclear what his guilty admission will imply for the megachurch with worldwide attain, and whether or not it’ll power the type of bigger reckoning over abuse and decades-long cover-ups that has swept the Catholic Church.
Many news shops in Mexico featured Garcia’s guilty plea on their homepages Friday night, together with the net web site Animal Politico and newspaper El Universal.
Claudia Eunice Hernandez, a former member of the church who’s in her early 30s and lives in Mexico City, mentioned Garcia’s arrest in 2019 led some folks to go away the church. She mentioned she expects extra will resolve to go away due to the guilty plea.
But she additionally thinks many church members — together with her 85-year-old grandmother — will proceed to imagine in Garcia’s innocence.
“I know how hard it is for them to see Naason like a normal person that also does bad things,” she mentioned. “For them, he’s a saint that does everything well.”
Renee de la Torre is a researcher in Guadalajara for the Center of Research and Graduate Studies in Social Anthropology and has studied La Luz del Mundo. She mentioned she doesn’t assume the plea deal will end result “in a total crisis for the institution.”
She pointed to how the church has constantly held that Garcia was harmless and has spent the previous couple of years attempting to construct a constructive picture of the establishment, claiming its membership has stayed robust.
De la Torre mentioned she believes the church will proceed to current Garcia as a sufferer of a conspiracy and that lots of its members will preserve backing him.
“I wouldn’t doubt that they’ll continue with the same logic, because we’ve already seen it,” she mentioned, pointing to sexual abuse allegations that Garcia’s father and grandfather, each of whom led the church, additionally confronted.
Had it proceeded, the trial may need provided a uncommon glimpse into the insular world of La Luz del Mundo — Light of the World — which boasts greater than 5 million members. It is Mexico’s largest evangelical church and has branches in 50 nations, together with church buildings in East and West Los Angeles.
The church was based in 1926 by Garcia’s grandfather, who was succeeded by Garcia’s father, Samuel Joaquin Flores. Flores died in 2014 and handed the mantle of apostle on to Garcia.
Both father and son have been accused of utilizing the church’s younger members as sexual servants, of main lavish life on the backs of their followers and of intimidating church members into silence and submission.
While Flores was by no means charged with against the law, Garcia’s arrest and the following charges towards him made worldwide headlines.
Garcia is claimed to have coerced women in his congregation to interact in numerous sex acts through the years. They allegedly had been advised that in the event that they went towards Garcia’s needs they had been going towards God.
Held in jail on $90-million bail, Garcia confronted charges starting from human trafficking and rape to forcible oral copulation of a minor and possession of kid pornography.
After Garcia’s guilty plea, the church’s usually energetic Facebook web page was dormant.
The news of the approaching plea deal garnered a combined response from a Reddit group that has change into a refuge for former church members, a few of whom have mentioned they had been abused.
One commenter speculated about whether or not the phrases of the plea deal may name for Garcia to out different alleged abusers within the church.
Another poster wrote, “In light of this disturbing news, we are calling on ALL the victims who are still out there who have been abused by this sick monster to please come forward.”
“We know there are many, many out there. And NOW is the time to stand up and fight.”
Times workers writers Jany and Ormseth reported from Los Angeles, Miller from Mexico City.
