Explore the horrifying story of the Christian church La Luz del Mundo (LLDM) and the sexual abuse that scores of members, many of them minors, say they have suffered at the hands of its successive leaders, known as the "Apostles."
In 2019, LLDM’s incumbent “Apostle,” Naasón Joaquín Garcia is apprehended along with two of his alleged handmaidens and charged with crimes relating to five Jane Does. In a heartbreaking turn of events for Joaquín Garcia’s victims, prosecutors unexpectedly offer him a plea deal depriving the victims of their day in court. While Joaquín Garcia is sentenced to just 16 years and eight months in jail, the survivors are determined to keep fighting for justice while grappling with their trauma.
In 2019, LLDM’s incumbent “Apostle,” Naasón Joaquín Garcia is apprehended along with two of his alleged handmaidens and charged with crimes relating to five Jane Does. In a heartbreaking turn of events for Joaquín Garcia’s victims, prosecutors unexpectedly offer him a plea deal depriving the victims of their day in court. While Joaquín Garcia is sentenced to just 16 years and eight months in jail, the survivors are determined to keep fighting for justice while grappling with their trauma.
Despite the church’s expanding power and influence, award-winning investigative journalists Rhonda Schwartz and Brian Ross report on the decades-long scandal as law enforcement also takes note. Risking their own safety, ex-LLDM members come forward to speak out as the church plans the construction of a fundamentalist community in Georgia, USA.
Despite the church’s expanding power and influence, award-winning investigative journalists Rhonda Schwartz and Brian Ross report on the decades-long scandal as law enforcement also takes note. Risking their own safety, ex-LLDM members come forward to speak out as the church plans the construction of a fundamentalist community in Georgia, USA.
In 2017, former members of LLDM form an online community on Reddit sharing stories of abuse at the hands of the church’s venerated “Apostles.” Groomed as children, and psychologically imprisoned within a cult-like society through indoctrination, familial pressures and strict, religious dogma, they were taught to surrender their free will (mind, body and soul) in return for eternal salvation. The survivor community expands and increases awareness while the church grows in prominence and spreads globally.
In 2017, former members of LLDM form an online community on Reddit sharing stories of abuse at the hands of the church’s venerated “Apostles.” Groomed as children, and psychologically imprisoned within a cult-like society through indoctrination, familial pressures and strict, religious dogma, they were taught to surrender their free will (mind, body and soul) in return for eternal salvation. The survivor community expands and increases awareness while the church grows in prominence and spreads globally.
Explore the horrifying story of the Christian church La Luz del Mundo (LLDM) and the sexual abuse that scores of members, many of them minors, say they have suffered at the hands of its successive leaders, known as the "Apostles."
Alex Lowry
Jigsaw Productions , HBO Documentary Films
