Local church leaders indicted for labor trafficking

The U.S. Attorney’s Office says the church lured people in with a promise of a free roof over their head and a hot meal, but what they didn’t know is they would become victims of IVM .

“These victims were held captive, stripped of their humble financial means, stripped of their identification, their freedom and their dignity,” said Brewer.

Brewer said victims were forced to follow strict rules and become panhandlers, selling candy throughout the streets of El Centro, San Diego, and Texas.

“They traveled to San Diego and throughout the southwest to recruit participants, many of them homeless,” said Brewer.

Ministry leaders allegedly also took one hundred percent of their victims’ welfare benefits and forced them to stay in the group homes by threatening to not feed them if they disobeyed.

This all following an FBI raid in May 2018, where FBI agents confiscated computers, financial records, and other evidence from the ministry.

“The former pastor of the church, Victor Gonzalez was arrested in Brownsville Texas, the defendants will be arraigned in federal court tomorrow,” said Brewer.

A neighbor we spoke to from one of the many houses said he had seen girls being kicked out of the homes and had seen church leaders not allowing several others to leave.