CultNEWS101 Articles: 5/11/2026

The Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light, FLDS, Scientology 

The Telegraph: The ‘Temple of Doom cult’ terrifying residents of Crewe

"...The Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light (AROPL), who dress all in black and wear beanie hats as “religious head coverings”, is led by Abdullah Hashem Aba Al-Sadiq, a 42-year-old Egyptian-American, who believes he is “the riser” and the self-proclaimed “saviour of mankind”.

But it’s the group’s military-style marches, hovering drones and robot guard dogs have alarmed his neighbours on Victoria Avenue in Crewe.

The married father of four has also said he is the successor to Jesus and his followers believe he can make the moon disappear.

Aliens control US presidents

Members of the sect also believe that George Washington was Adam Weishaupt, who is believed to be the founder of the Illuminati, and that a race of aliens known as “Shfar” control US presidents and world leaders.

The sect’s gospel suggests that George Bush Snr is a “shapeshifting extraterrestrial” who is “under control”.

Bizarre scripture also discusses a planet called Al-Aroos where rabbits are the size of bears while followers have told of Hashem’s “miracles” including bringing a woman in Germany back from the dead and healing blind people.

The sect has been described as a “cult” and on Wednesday 10 people from eight different countries were arrested after a raid involving more than 500 officers from four police forces as part of an investigation into alleged modern slavery."

Rolling Stone: She Survived the FLDS Cult. Now, She’s Healing Through Music

Naomi “Nomz” Bistline was one of Samuel Bateman’s 23 “spiritual wives” — but after a stint in prison, she’s coping with her past, one song at a time.

"Bistline was in a Texas prison serving a 21-month sentence for unlawfully removing minors from state custody — a crime she committed under the direction of Sam Bateman. Bateman is the leader of a small offshoot sect of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS) who claims to be a prophet and the heir apparent to Warren Jeffs, the FLDS president who is currently serving life in prison for child sexual assault.

Bistline was the 13th of Bateman’s 23 “spiritual wives” — nine of which were girls as young as nine, and all of whom he sexually abused. After living a sheltered life in a secluded town, followed by a stint in prison, Bistline now finds herself in the public eye, thanks to Netflix’s new docuseries Trust Me: The False Prophet. It tells the story of Christine Marie, PhD — an expert in cult psychology who infiltrated Bateman’s group posing as a documentary filmmaker, ultimately taking him down using footage as evidence against him — and the women like Bistline whom she helped to set free."

ABC7: Video shows mob ransacking Church of Scientology in Midtown

"Detectives are reviewing video after a large group of young people stormed and ransacked parts of the Church of Scientology in Midtown Manhattan on Saturday afternoon, an incident the church described as a coordinated attack.

The video, captured around 4:30 p.m., shows a crowd moving through Midtown and near East 46th Street, where police say the group broke into the church during a seminar."

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Cults In The News

The last week of April and the beginning of May 2026 have seen several significant legal and media developments regarding high-demand groups and controversial movements.

### **Major Police Raid in Crewe, UK**

On Wednesday, April 29, 2026, approximately **500 police officers** conducted a massive raid on the headquarters of the **Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light** in Crewe, Cheshire.

 * **The Charges:** Authorities are investigating allegations of serious sexual offenses, modern-day slavery, and forced marriage.

 * **Arrests:** Nine individuals—including citizens from the US, Mexico, and Egypt—were taken into custody. This follows a March 2026 complaint from a former member who alleged she was raped and abused at the group’s headquarters (a former orphanage) in 2023.

 * **Context:** The group is distinct from the Ahmadiyya Muslim community and has previously been under scrutiny regarding skilled worker visa usage.

### **New Docuseries: "The Cult of NatureBoy"**

ABC News Studios released a new docuseries on April 29, 2026, focusing on **Eligio Bishop** (known as "NatureBoy") and his group, **CarbonNation**.

 * **The Story:** The series explores how Bishop used social media to recruit followers into what he termed a "utopia" in metro Atlanta.

 * **Legal Status:** Though the series is new, it highlights the 2024 sentencing of Bishop to life without parole for crimes including rape and false imprisonment. It features new testimony from victims who joined the group while struggling with depression and family issues.

### **Ongoing Focus on the FLDS and Samuel Bateman**

Netflix recently released "Trust Me: The False Prophet," which has brought renewed attention to the **Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS)** splinter group led by **Samuel Bateman**.

 * **Latest Updates:** As of mid-April and continuing through last week, news outlets have focused on how Bateman continues to exert control over his followers and multiple wives from behind bars.

 * **Naomi "Nomz" Bistline:** A former wife of Bateman has been active in the media over the last few weeks, warning that the "nightmare" of coercive control can happen to anyone and detailing Bateman’s rise following the power vacuum left by Warren Jeffs.

### **"Greggy’s Cult" Legal Proceedings**

Updates continue regarding the federal case against five leaders of an online group known as **"Greggy's Cult."**

 * **The Case:** The FBI and U.S. Attorneys have characterized the group as a "nightmare platform" used to exploit and harass minors.

 * **Recent Activity:** While the initial charges were filed late last year, the case has remained in the headlines this past week as federal prosecutors detailed the "fansigning" and self-harm rituals the group allegedly used to demonstrate loyalty.

It seems there's a strong focus lately on both the **digital recruitment** of high-demand groups and the **raiding of physical compounds**. 

In The New this week (April 4–11, 2026)

This week (April 4–11, 2026), cult-related media is dominated by the release of a major documentary series uncovering a "False Prophet," new investigative books exploring the psychology of recruitment, and updates on high-profile cult trials. 

Top News & Features

• Netflix's Trust Me: The False Prophet: This week’s biggest release, the four-part docuseries Trust Me: The False Prophet (April 8, 2026), exposes the rise of Samuel Bateman. Bateman declared himself the successor to imprisoned FLDS leader Warren Jeffs and was eventually sentenced to 50 years in prison for child sex crimes and kidnapping.
• Ongoing Control from Prison: New reports this week highlight that Bateman continues to exert "daily indoctrination" over his remaining adult followers through frequent phone calls from prison, raising concerns about the persistence of his influence.
• Survivor Interviews: Survivors like Nomz Bistline, one of Bateman’s former adult wives, have come forward in interviews this week to warn that "it can happen to anyone," describing the psychological isolation and eventual freedom found only after his arrest.

New Books & Investigative Reports

• "What Draws People Into Cults?": A widely discussed new book released this week tracks the journeys of two followers to answer why "smart, educated people" fall for high-control groups. It emphasizes that no one "joins" a cult; they join what they believe is an "alternative community" that gradually transforms.
• Warren Jeffs Update: On April 11, 2026, People published a deep dive into the life of Warren Jeffs nearly 20 years after his initial arrest, examining how his crimes and the FLDS community continue to impact the public consciousness decades later.

Legal Developments

• Hmong Prophet Sentencing: In Northern California, cult leader Vang is scheduled for sentencing on April 14, 2026, after being found guilty of molesting and raping followers in a community he built at the base of Table Mountain.
• Kenya Doomsday Cult Trial: Ongoing testimony in Kenya continues for the manslaughter trial of an evangelical pastor whose doomsday sect led to the deaths of hundreds of followers through forced starvation.

CultNEWS101 Articles: 9/17/2025

Jesus Army, UK, Legal, La Luz del Mundo, FLDS

BBC: Alleged abusers may get share of Jesus Army wealth

"People accused of child abuse could receive significantly larger payments than their alleged victims under plans to share the fortune of a disgraced evangelical sect.

The organisation, known as the Jesus Army, has already paid out compensation to hundreds of people as part of a damages scheme.

Legal submissions, seen by the BBC, reveal it has £25m left which it intends to divide among loyal members. Survivors described the proposals as sickening.

A spokesperson for the Jesus Fellowship Community Trust (JFCT), which is winding up the affairs of the group, insisted the trustees had acted "in accordance with the trust deed".

The Jesus Army, or Jesus Fellowship Church, was founded by Noel Stanton, the late pastor of Bugbrooke Chapel, in Northamptonshire in 1969.

In 2017, three years prior to the group disbanding, documents seen by the BBC showed the estimated total value of its assets was £58.6m.

These included businesses and 55 large houses throughout England, which have since been sold."

AP: Longtime head of Mexican megachurch is indicted in New York on federal sex trafficking charges

"The longtime head of a Mexican megachurch who is serving more than 16 years in a California prison for sexually abusing young followers has been charged with racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking for allegedly victimizing members of the church for decades, federal authorities said Wednesday.

A New York grand jury returned the indictment alleging that Naasón Joaquín García, 56, and five others, including his 79-year-old mother, exploited the church for decades, enabling the systemic sexual abuse of children and women for the sexual gratification of García and his father, who died in 2014.

The newly unsealed indictment said the criminal activity included the creation of photos and videos of child sexual abuse and had begun after the church was founded a century ago by Garcia's grandfather, who died in 1964. Garcia's father, Samuel Joaquin Flores, led the church from then until his death."

" ... García is the head of La Luz del Mundo (The Light of the World), which claims to have 5 million followers worldwide. Believers consider him to be the "apostle" of Jesus Christ.

Federal authorities said that he used his spiritual sway to have sex with girls and young women who were told it would lead to their salvation — or damnation if they refused. His efforts were enabled by others, including his mother, who helped groom the girls to be sexually abused, they said.

Prosecutors said García also directed girls, boys and women to engage in group sex with each other, often in his presence, for his sexual gratification.

Sometimes, they added, he required the children to wear masks so they would not realize they were having incestual sex."

NewsNation: Investigator gets exclusive look at cult leader Warren Jeffs' secret caves

Ashleigh Banfield talks with Mike King, a criminal investigator and author, who got an inside look at the home of Warren Jeffs, the infamous leader of the polygamist FLDS Church.

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CultNEWS101 Articles: 9/8/2025

Research Request, Persuasion, Pseudo-Psychological Training Courses, FLDS, Kingdom of God Global Church

Rachael Reign, founder of Surviving Universal UK (SUUK), is running an anonymous cult mapping survey to better understand people's experiences of high-control and coercive groups in the UK. The findings will be used to inform policy and provide up-to-date insight into the scale and nature of cults in the UK. If you've been affected or have knowledge to share, you can take part here: https://forms.gle/hnSf8uwP9zLQ4L8P8

IJCAM: Cults and persuasion: Submission as preference shifting, Luigi Corvaglia

"The literature on mind manipulation is often spoiled by the specious use of the metaphor of "brainwashing". This is sometimes done under the guise of emphasising the irrationality of manipulation and showing that it lies outside the realm of science. This paper will instead show how the findings of experimental psychology and behavioural economics lead to the identification of a process of change in thinking and behaviour that can be described in scientific terms. This process is achieved through a slow self-selection of recruits and an equally gradual increase in requirements. The classic Milgram experiment is a suitable instrument for explaining this. The framing effect identified by Tversky and Khaneman, which is so important in marketing, can bring about counterproductive decisions in a context that makes them reasonable for those who make them. This is to show that there is nothing magical or metaphysical about mind control, as long as it is understood as a process of conditioning that works through progressive selection and leads to an increase in conformism in a closed environment. Instead, the idea of rational choice, on which the defence of manipulative cults is based, is displaced from the scientific realm."

"In this article, Luigi Corvaglia critiques the simplistic framing of cult influence as either "brainwashing" or "free choice." Drawing on psychological research and real-world cult behavior, he presents a nuanced model of gradual persuasion and preference shifting. Cult membership, he argues, is shaped through cumulative, socially reinforced decisions influenced by cognitive biases, emotional salience, and bounded rationality—not through magic or total autonomy. The paper reframes cult behavior as scientifically understandable and ethically pressing."

Lorita Tinelli Psicologa: The Seduction of the Ineffective: A Scientific Deconstruction of Pseudo-Psychological Training Courses

How the Wellness Industry Exploits Cognitive Biases to Sell Infallible Certainties at the Expense of Evidence

"In an era characterized by growing complexity, economic uncertainty, information overload, and a generally competitive climate, the human need for stability, control, and self-improvement reaches historic peaks.

It is in this fertile humus that a multi-billion dollar industry thrives: that of personal and professional training, which promises quick fixes, simple keys to success, and profound existential transformations.

These programs, often offered in the form of intensive courses and seminars, unfold in contexts that mimic the aesthetics of science without adopting its substance, leveraging deep and universal needs: the desire for belonging, the fear of being inadequate, the search for purpose.

The need for certainty makes the individual vulnerable to the allure of the promise of an absolute truth: a clear path to finally becoming free and happy."

People: Where Are Warren Jeffs' 80 Wives Now? A Look at Their Lives After the Cult Leader Was Imprisoned for Sexually Assaulting Minors

" ... Warren had over 80 wives in what he called "spiritual" marriages. Many of his former wives have spoken out against the convict, including Briell Decker, who was his 65th wife.

After escaping the organization, Decker spoke to The Guardian in 2018 about her experience marrying him at 18 years old, describing him as "creepy."

"When Warren was around, I'd go into hiding," she said. "If I didn't, I'd have to be part of the temple stuff that he was doing," elaborating that meant sex acts.

However, one of Warren's wives continues to defend his innocence. Naomie Jeffs — who was considered his "favorite" wife — was first married to Warren's father when she was 18 and he was 83, becoming his 17th wife, according to Oxygen. A month after Rulon's death in 2002 at age 92, Naomie married Warren.

She later became his scribe, taking notes during his ceremonies and sermons, as well as from recordings of his day-to-day activities. She described the role as 'an honor.'

Naomie stands by her belief that Warren is innocent."

WFLA: 'Markings of a cult': Family members say they were cut off from loved ones by Kingdom of God Global Church

"Family members say they were cut off from communicating with their loved ones by the Kingdom of God Global Church.

On Wednesday, the FBI raided a home in the exclusive Avila Community, north of Tampa, that is associated with the church.

The federal government says church leaders controlled where and when the workers slept, when and what they ate, what they wore, how they spoke, and when they could go to the bathroom.

David John is the lead pastor at the Impact Church in Detroit and says one of his family members was taken in by the Kingdom of God Global Church."

Documents filed in federal court say workers were forced to put in long hours in call centers to raise money to support the lavish lifestyles of church leaders.

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CultNEWS101 Articles: 8/20/2025

MLM, FLDS, Conspiracies, Geelong Revival Centre, Australia

The Guru: A Crypto MLM Scam is Taking Over a Mormon Town—It May Be Run by the Chinese Mafia

A crypto scam has inundated the once polygamous town of Short Creek. A man named Harvey Dockstader has roped hundreds of people into it, including one local who invested $200,000. A man in Sebastopol who invested 1 million dollars was found dead last December

CBC: Young people more prone to believe in conspiracies, research shows

" ... [P]eople younger than 35 are more likely to believe in conspiracy theories than other age groups, according to a recent study by Stockemer and co-author Jean-Nicolas Bordeleau that surveyed more than 380,000 people internationally.

The research was recently published in the journal Political Psychology.

"Conspiracy theories are now for everyone," Stockemer told CBC Radio's All In A Day, noting that between 20 and 25 per cent of the population believes in one.

"But the young are slightly more likely to believe in them."

For example, their research suggests a slight year-over-year drop in conspiracies to the point where an 80-year-old is about 10 per cent less likely to believe one than an 18-year-old."

The Age: I escaped a cult - for years I didn't even realise I was in one

"A couple of weeks ago, I stumbled across the livestream for the Victorian parliament's inquiry into the recruitment methods and impacts of cults and organised fringe groups. It was launched after recent claims by former cult members, including from the Geelong Revival Centre, and as I looked at the inquiry's terms of reference I felt an unexpected fear escaping. I read about the coercive practices organised religious groups can use, their methods to recruit and retain members, and the significant psychological harm they can cause and found myself nodding along in recognition.

The next day these feelings came flooding back when I read a news story about a child in Queensland who died within a secretive cult, and the efforts of churches to expose coercion with their ranks.

"Good," I thought, surprised but pleased at this attention being drawn to a reality that has thus far remained largely hidden.

For five years, from late adolescence into my early 20s, I was in a cult. And for decades, I have carried and hidden this early part of my life, feeling great shame that I was gullible enough to be lured into such a group, and even more ashamed of the grievous mental health struggles I experienced upon leaving, as I tried to rebuild my life from scratch.

There is a perception that someone who finds themselves in a cult is different to the rest of us – perhaps more naive or vulnerable. While to some extent this is true, as it was my own early trauma history and psychological vulnerability that made me responsive to the recruitment tactics used, I have also spoken to numerous people who had healthy and safe lives, but still found themselves in these groups.

Many highly intelligent professionals have spoken to me of their time in organised high-control religious groups, and I have come to realise how common some of these groups are. But broadly, societal awareness of their existence is sorely lacking, perhaps led by misconceptions that cults demonstrate their strangest behaviours and beliefs openly for all to see.

In reality, most such groups will have a seemingly normal front, with stranger beliefs and coercion only appearing once you are embedded within the structure of the organisation and have bought in to some of their beliefs. That's when they warn you that changing your mind now would cause distress.

The word cult is often used unthinkingly. Cults are social groups that have extreme, religious, spiritual, or philosophical beliefs and rituals. Devotion to a particular person is another characteristic, and they are set apart from religious groups by the coercion and secrecy which characterises their actions. However, normal religious groups too can have these elements of coercion. Due to their secretive nature, it's difficult to determine how many cults operate in Australia, though estimates suggest approximately 3000, including some well-known ones such as The Family.

The hardest part of leaving a cult is the recognition that you are in a cult, and for me, this early stage took the longest. I was only able to make my way to this conclusion through anti-cult education resources, which allowed me to see the common patterns across high-control groups."

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CultNEWS101 Articles: 7/25/2025 (Astrology, FLDS, Jesus Army, People of Hope)

Astrology, FLDS,  Jesus Army,  People of Hope

Macleans: How Astrology Became the New Therapy

Millions of Canadians are turning to the zodiac to understand the world and their place in it

" ... A 2017 study commissioned by the Ontario Science Centre found that anti-scientific beliefs are more prevalent among 20- and 30-somethings than older adults. Like astrology, this group cuts a wide swath: the predictable melange of anti-vaxxers and Fuck Trudeau–ers and tinfoil hatters, but also those who approach facts from a more pluralistic perspective. "I think my generation is more willing to embrace ambiguity," Nat Foote told me. I take her point, but my brain can't get away from the first time I heard the phrase "alternative facts" from Kellyanne Conway as hundreds of thousands of women in pink pussyhats marched in the streets."

The Times: I feared the cult would kidnap my children — then they vanished

Elizabeth Roundy left a polygamous church rife with abuse in 2020, taking her children with her. Four out of five of them have since disappeared

"In the middle of Idaho's vast wheatfields, miles from the nearest town, is the crossroads where Elizabeth Roundy lives. For the past five years she monitored the cars pulling up there day and night, convinced that her tormentors were coming for her children.

On June 22, she dropped her 13-year-old son, Allen Larand Fischer, and 16-year-old daughter, Rachelle Leray Fischer, at a nearby internet café while she went to a Bible study class. An hour later, they were gone. "I felt my stomach fall and my heart break," she said. "They've been trying to get them from me and they did it. Please, please come back, I am just devastated."

Roundy, 51, is one of thousands of women who have fled the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS). The sect split from the mainstream Mormon church in the early 20th century over the practice of polygamy and its members still believe that plural marriage ensures everlasting celestial afterlife.

In the past 50 years the FLDS, now widely considered to be a cult, has been exposed as a cradle of sexual violence and abuse. It is an insular community, now scattered across the American southwest and led by a single man, Warren Jeffs, 69, who is serving a life prison sentence for the sexual assault of two children. At the time of his arrest, 24 of his 78 wives (in addition to his legal spouse) were under the age of 17. Many other followers have faced similar convictions.

Roundy left her marriage and the church in 2020, taking her children with her. Four out of five of them have since disappeared. She believes they have been coerced into rejecting her and returning to the sect."

BBC: Inside the Cult of the Jesus Army

Inside the Cult of the Jesus Army charts the rise and fall of the controversial Jesus Fellowship/People/Army of Northamptonshire over its 50-60 year history, lead by the self-appointed Pastor and so-called prophet, Noel Stanton.  It Is being aired on 27th July & 3rd August, 9 pm on BBC2 and both episodes will be available on the Iplayer on 27th.

NJ Monthly: Podcast Digs Inside the Troubling World of an Accused NJ Cult

Shadow of Hope examines the People of Hope, a fringe religious group that thrived in North Jersey from the late 1970s to the early '90s.

"It's Sunday, October 27, 1985, in Berkeley Heights. The usual suburban sounds of birds chirping and neighbors chatting are drowned out by a chorus of some 200 protestors at Little Flower Church. The demonstrators' grievance: Their township and parish are being infiltrated by what they view as a cult.

The organization in question, People of Hope, thrived in North Jersey from the late 1970s to the early '90s. What started as a charismatic prayer group became the subject of abuse allegations and national news headlines.

Karen Ann Coburn was a Cranford teenager whose mother was briefly involved with the organization in its early days. In her recent podcast, Shadow of Hope, the writer attempts to bring this cryptic piece of Jersey history to light. "I had been a journalist, and in the back of my head all those years, I thought, There's a story there," Coburn says.

People of Hope was founded as a prayer group by a Newark priest and eventually opened chapters across New Jersey with members as far away as Long Island. At its height, the community had unofficial estimates of 3,000 members, who were encouraged to sell their homes and relocate to Berkeley Heights, and later Warren Township, to be closer to community leaders.

But as People of Hope grew, so did evidence of a disturbing culture of control, Coburn alleges in her podcast. Accounts by former members and church archives reveal that People of Hope instructed parents to use physical discipline on infants and suggested withholding food as punishment. Strict gender roles were upheld, requiring girls to wear skirts and discouraging fathers from attending the births of their children. Sexual abuse allegations were levied against leaders. Author Margaret Atwood has cited the group, whose community coordinators' wives were called handmaids, as part of her inspiration for the 1985 novel The Handmaid's Tale and the Hulu series based on the book."

CultNEWS101 Articles: 7/2/2025

Religion, Meditation, Ayurveda, FLDS

Federalist: Is Your Child's Public School Teaching Eastern Mysticism Like This Chicago Classroom?

"Meditation programs, often led by yoga instructors or trained facilitators. These initiatives are commonly labeled as nonreligious tools to reduce stress, improve focus, and enhance emotional regulation.

Programs like Mindful Schools, Calm Schools, and Quiet Time, the latter promoted by the New Age David Lynch Foundation, have made their way into classrooms across the United States. But what appears to be a neutral wellness intervention is often deeply rooted in Eastern religious traditions, raising concerns about religious freedom, consent, and the psychological safety of children.

One striking example occurred in Chicago, where a Christian student, Mariyah Green, won a $150,000 legal settlement after she said she was coerced into participating in the Quiet Time meditation program. The program involved chanting Sanskrit prayers during a ceremony known as a Puja, an act of worship in Hinduism that includes offerings to deities. Green alleged she wasn't informed of the religious significance and believed participation affected her academic standing and athletic eligibility. Both the Chicago Public Schools and the David Lynch Foundation settled the case, though they denied liability.

In addition to the Mariyah Green lawsuit, other legal battles have highlighted the spiritual nature of school-based mindfulness meditation programs. In Encinitas, California, a group of parents filed a lawsuit in 2013 against the school district for promoting yoga as part of the school day. The parents argued that the program, funded by a $500,000 grant from the K. P. Jois Foundation, a group that teaches Ashtanga Yoga, rooted in Hindu traditions, was inherently religious. Although the court ultimately ruled in favor of the school, the case revealed just how deeply spiritual ideologies can become embedded in the name of wellness. Children were reportedly taught poses named after Hindu deities and encouraged to chant "Om," a sacred syllable in Eastern religions. What the school called physical education, the plaintiffs recognized as indoctrination.

Such programs are spreading across the country. In addition to Mindful Schools, Calm Schools, and Quiet Time programs, many other programs are marketed as secular, science-based tools for improving focus and emotional regulation in schools. Yet a closer look reveals that many of these initiatives often include breathing rituals, body scans, and visualizations, practices directly tied to Hinduism, Buddhism, or New Age belief systems. By avoiding overt spiritual language, they slip past constitutional scrutiny while reshaping the spiritual landscape of the classroom."

JAMA, Medical News & Perspectives, Oct. 2, 1991: "Maharishi Ayur-Veda: guru's marketing scheme promises the world eternal 'perfect health'"

The Minnesota Star Tribune: Grand Marais trial over North Shore land sale renews questions about breakaway Mormon sect leader

"Elissa Wall hasn't seen a cent of the more than $10 million dollars she's owed from a lawsuit against self-described prophet and polygamous cult leader Warren Jeffs.

He doesn't have a bank account, she testified Wednesday afternoon.

Wall is trying to collect money from a land sale conducted, on paper, by his brother Seth Jeffs and his Montana-based Emerald Industries LLC. She's convinced that Seth Jeffs used Warren Jeffs' money to buy 40 acres here in 2018, property that he sold in 2023 for $130,000.

"I'm here to recover the money given to Seth Jeffs," she told the Cook County jury.

According to court documents, Seth Jeffs claims he used his own money to buy the land. He's expected to testify on Thursday.

Warren Jeffs is also named in the lawsuit, but he's currently in a Texas prison where he is serving a life sentence for child sexual assault. He's still in the leadership role he inherited with the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, according to Wall.

The fundamentalist sect broke away from Mormonism after the latter moved away from polygamy."

The selection of articles for CultNEWS101 does not imply that Patrick Ryan or Joseph Kelly endorse the content. We provide information from multiple perspectives to foster dialogue.

CultNEWS101 Articles: 7/1/2025

Podcast, Brainwashing, Book, FLDS, Legal

A Little Bit Culty: Mindf*ck 101: The Science of Brainwashing with Rebecca Lemov (Part 1)

"Diving deep into the mind games with Harvard professor and author #RebeccaLemov, because if you've ever wondered whether brainwashing is real, the answer is a very unsettling yes.

In Part 1 of our convo, we're cracking open the origins of brainwashing—from communist re-education camps to the electric shock labs of the Milgram experiment—and asking why we still can't seem to prove it in court. Rebecca's new book, The Instability of Truth, peels back the layers of mind control and thought reform, including what went down with Patty Hearst, why Stockholm Syndrome isn't what you think it is, and how emotional trauma becomes the secret sauce in cult programming."

Rebecca Lemov: The Instability of Truth, Brainwashing, Mind Control, and Hyper-Persuasion

"Drawing from rare archival materials, interviews, and the overlooked trauma history of Cold War POWs, The Instability of Truth traces how psychological coercion has evolved — from interrogation cells to algorithmic feeds. This book reveals how the idea of mind control has spread across the globe and penetrated courtrooms, secret labs, military schools, and today's digital sites."

ABC News: Amber Alert issued for missing Idaho teens linked to FLDS group

The Idaho State Police issued an Amber Alert for the two teens.

"Two teenagers went missing from eastern Idaho, according to local authorities, and their mother says she believes they left with members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (FLDS).

Rachelle Fischer, 15, and Allen Fisher, 13, were last seen on the evening of Sunday, June 22, 2025, in Monteview, Idaho, according to the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office.

Elizabeth Roundy, the children's mother and former FLDS member, told Salt Lake City ABC affiliate ABC4 she believes her children left with their older sister to fulfill religious obligations.

The FLDS is a polygamist breakaway offshoot of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and its leader is serving a life sentence in prison.

"They [were] willing to go because they think that it's their salvation," Roundy said."

News, Education, Intervention, Recovery

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Intervention101.com to help families and friends understand and effectively respond to the complexity of a loved one's cult involvement.

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Grand Marais trial over North Shore land sale renews questions about breakaway Mormon sect leader

Elissa Wall testified Wednesday that Seth Jeffs used his brother Warren’s money to buy land — money that is owed to her from a $10 million judgment.

Christa Lawler

The Minnesota Star Tribune

June 25, 2025

GRAND MARAIS, MINN. – Elissa Wall hasn’t seen a cent of the more than $10 million dollars she’s owed from a lawsuit against self-described prophet and polygamous cult leader Warren Jeffs.

He doesn’t have a bank account, she testified Wednesday afternoon.

Wall is trying to collect money from a land sale conducted, on paper, by his brother Seth Jeffs and his Montana-based Emerald Industries LLC. She’s convinced that Seth Jeffs used Warren Jeffs’ money to buy 40 acres here in 2018, property that he sold in 2023 for $130,000.

“I’m here to recover the money given to Seth Jeffs,” she told the Cook County jury.

According to court documents, Seth Jeffs claims he used his own money to buy the land. He’s expected to testify on Thursday.

Warren Jeffs is also named in the lawsuit, but he’s currently in a Texas prison where he is serving a life sentence for child sexual assault. He’s still in the leadership role he inherited with the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, according to Wall.

The fundamentalist sect broke away from Mormonism after the latter moved away from polygamy.

Wall testified that the church has shell organizations it funnels its money through. Warren Jeffs is skilled in bookkeeping and tax laws and he’s at the top of the hierarchy. Money is never in his name, she said.

Seth Jeffs, she claims, has benefited from the financial arrangement.

Wall’s attorney, Richard Furlong, shared with the jury financial logs discovered by Wall that showed payments to Seth Jeffs from October 2008 through August 2018. Some come from trust, some are listed as cash. Most are about $1,000; the largest is $62,000.

Warren Jeffs’ name isn’t on any of the payments, noted Seth Jeffs’ attorney, William Paul.

Still, Wall is convinced that the money is divvied up by Warren Jeffs, who told his brother to start Emerald Industries as a way to hide his money. She maintains ties to the church as an advocate for those who have left the church or are looking to sever connections.

Wall testified that her knowledge of the inner financial workings come from years of experience.

“Seth Jeffs doesn’t owe you money, does he?” Paul asked her.

Much of his cross examination relied on reading from court documents and pressing Wall on specifics: the dates of financial transactions between the Jeffs brothers, the names of Warren Jeffs’ agents who funnel his money.

About $60,000 from the Seth Jeffs’ property sale has been frozen by the bank, according to his attorney.

Asked how much money she was hoping to get from Seth Jeffs, Walls said she didn’t know.

“We have to determine how much,” she said. “We are here to collect that judgment.”

She said its hard to quantify how much money has passed from brother to brother. Maybe thousands, maybe millions.

Warren Jeffs has never faced Wall in a courtroom, not now and not when she won the sizable judgment against him in 2017. Wall, who was born into a polygamous family and married off to a first cousin when she was 14, sued Warren Jeffs and the church for damages in 2005.

The case meandered through the Utah court system for more than a decade. In the early parts, Jeffs was on the lam and listed on the FBI’s most wanted list.

He was captured during a routine traffic stop in Las Vegas in 2006.

Seth Jeffs, too, has had legal troubles. He pleaded guilty to food stamp fraud in 2016. Before that, he was convicted of hiding Warren Jeffs from authorities in 2006.

Seth Jeffs’ purchase of the land here in 2018 set off alarms in the community.

After leaving the church, Wall wrote the New York Times’ bestselling memoir “Stolen Innocence: My Story of Growing up in a Polygamous Sect, Becoming a Teenage Bride, and Breaking Free of Warren Jeffs.”

https://www.startribune.com/grand-marais-trial-over-north-shore-land-sale-gets-into-the-inner-workings-of-warren-jeffs-cult/601378691