The leader of Mexico's La Luz del Mundo megachurch, Naason Joaquin Garcia, has been sentenced to 16 years and eight months in prison at a Los Angeles court after pleading guilty to three counts of sexually abusing girls from his congregation last week.

According to BBC News, Garcia's plea deal means that his sentence is considerably shorter than the life imprisonment he could have faced if he had been found guilty in a trial. Garcia is known as "the Apostle" to his followers.

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Leader of Mexico's La Luz del Mundo Megachurch

The fundamentalist Christian organization La Luz del Mundo, or The Light of the World in English, was founded in Mexico in 1926 by Eusebio Joaquin Gonzalez, the grandfather of Naason Joaquin Garcia.

The church's influence has reached parts of California that have large Hispanic populations. Garcia reportedly would often visit these areas.

The church claimed that it had baptized more than five million people worldwide. However, independently verifying the numbers of its followers was hard.

In a statement, the church noted that Garcia pleaded guilty as he did not think he could get a fair trial after prosecutors withheld or doctored the evidence. The church said the agreement would allow Garcia to be freed sooner, ABC News reported.

The church added that "the Apostle of Jesus Christ has had no choice but to accept with much pain that the agreement presented is the best way forward to protect the church."

Garcia took over as an "apostle" after his father, Samuel Joaquin Flores, died in 2014. Flores was also allegedly abusive in 1997. However, authorities in Mexico never filed criminal charges.

Garcia was arrested at Los Angeles airport in 2019 along with two of his female followers as they arrived by private jet.

Naason Joaquin Garcia's Child Sex Abuse Case

Prosecutors noted that Naason Joaquin Garcia used his spiritual influence to have sex with girls and young women who were told it would lead to their salvation or damnation if they refused.

Five young women testified that Garcia had sexually abused them. They called him in court "evil," monster," "disgusting human waste," and the "antichrist."

A woman identified only as Jane Doe 4 said she worshipped her abused, adding that she was Garcia's niece. The woman noted that Garcia used her "over and over again like a sacrificial lamb taken to slaughter."

Sacramento Bee reported that the La Luz del Mundo megachurch leader pleaded guilty to two counts of forcible oral copulation involving minors and one count of a lewd act upon a child who was 15 on Friday.

Prosecutors dropped 16 counts that included allegations of raping children and women and human trafficking to produce child pornography in response to Garcia's plea.

Patricia Fusco, supervising deputy attorney general, praised the victims for their bravery in standing up to Garcia and his followers, who have rallied around him and shamed the young victims.

Garcia was reported to be aided by others in the church who groomed his victims and facilitated the abuse. However, the two women who have pleaded guilty to related charges have yet to be sentenced.

Victims said they were called angels and were told they were Garcia's property. They added that Garcia told them that his wishes were godly commands and they should serve the Lord without question.

The La Luz del Mundo megachurch leader also told the girls that a king could have mistresses and "an apostle of God can never be judged for his actions."

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This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Mary Webber

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