A group of people from the Orthodox Jewish sect Lev Tahor tried on Sunday afternoon and evening to force their way into the headquarters of a Guatemalan government protection home where dozens of minors who were picked up from said sect by authorities on Friday after reports of child abuse.
The Attorney General’s Office (PGN) in charge of the state protection of minors said in a press release that the members of Lev Tahor, “forcing the (entrance) gate, abducting girls, boys and adolescents sheltered in the place. which caused its dispersion in surrounding streets (to the place).” All the minors were recovered and returned to custody, the PGN said.
Uriel Goldman, a member of the sect, told reporters outside the facilities that the accusations of child abuse were false and that it was religious persecution. “Please release all the children, they are detained for nothing, nothing like this has ever happened,” he said of the accusations.
Dressed in robes and with their heads covered, the members of the sect at times prayed and at other times pushed police officers trying to enter the facilities. At almost midnight, the authorities are still waiting for the arrival of a judge to establish that the children are not being mistreated.
On Friday, police, prosecutors, and members of the army, with the support of the United States Department of National Security (Homeland Security), raided the Lev Tahor community located in the department of San Rosa, about 90 kilometers from the Guatemalan capital, due to complaints of alleged abuses, rescuing at least 160 minors.
The prosecutor’s office assured that the skeleton of a minor would have been located in the raid and confirmed the rescue of minors who were allegedly abused and the kidnapping of passports, computers, among others.
According to the prosecutor’s office, the complaint was filed on November 11 when a group of minors escaped from the community and filed the complaint, “for the possible commission of crimes ranging from forced pregnancy, abuse of minors, rape,” the facts would have been committed by at least one member of the community against minors.
The sect has spread to several countries and has been constantly denounced for abuse of minors.
In 2022, Mexican authorities arrested a sect leader accused of organized crime and human trafficking in the municipality of Tapachula, near the border with Guatemala; then women and minors would also have been rescued.
That same year, two leaders of the same sect in the United States were convicted of kidnapping and child sexual exploitation crimes in New York. They allegedly kidnapped a 14-year-old girl and another minor. She was handed over to an adult man with whom she had an illegal marriage.
Connect with the Voice of America! Subscribe to our channelsYouTube, WhatsApp and to newsletter. Turn on notifications and follow us on Facebook, x and instagram.
Add Comment