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Jehovah's Witnesses

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Jehovah's Witness Elder Sentenced For Sexually Abusing Children: PA AG Jehovah's Witness Elder Sentenced For Sexually Abusing Children: PA AG
Jehovah's Witness Elder Sentenced For Sexually Abusing Children: PA AG One of several Jehovah's Witnesses accused of child sexual abuse has been convicted, the Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office announced on Friday, Oct. 1.  Norman Aviles-Garriga, 44 of Lancaster County, molested at least three young children between the ages of five and ten, as Daily Voice previously reported. He has been sentenced to 11.5 to 23 years in prison for the sexual abuse, Attorney General Michelle Henry explained in an updated release.  Aviles-Garriga's status as an elder in his congregation helped him gain the trust of many parents and afforded him access to their …

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by Jillian Pikora
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PA Jehovah's Witness Member Sentenced For Sexually Assaulting Girl While She Slept: AG PA Jehovah's Witness Member Sentenced For Sexually Assaulting Girl While She Slept: AG
PA Jehovah's Witness Member Sentenced For Sexually Assaulting Girl While She Slept: AG A 56-year-old Pennsylvania man has been sentenced to prison for sexual assault of a girl that began more than 20 years ago, officials said. Luis Manuel Ayala-Velasquez, 56, of Reading, was arrested last year after a grand jury investigation where sexual assault charges were recommended against more than a dozen members of the Jehovah’s Witnesses faith, Attorney General Michelle Henry said. Ayala-Velasquez will serve 14 to 46 years in prison after pleading guilty earlier this year to five felony counts, including rape of an unconscious person, Henry said. He was sentenced Wednesday…

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by Cecilia Levine
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Jehovah's Witnesses Caught Sexually Abusing More PA Children, Prosecutors Say Jehovah's Witnesses Caught Sexually Abusing More PA Children, Prosecutors Say
Jehovah's Witnesses Caught Sexually Abusing More PA Children, Prosecutors Say Five men are accused of sexually abusing children in Pennsylvania, says the state Attorney General's Office.  All five suspects and their alleged victims are members of Jehovah's Witnesses congregations, AG Michelle Henry said in a release dated Friday, July 7.  The charges come just months after nine other Jehovah's Witnesses congregants were accused of similar charges in the Keystone State — four of them last October and five more in February, Daily Voice reported.  The suspects range in age from 45 to 61, and all but one are Pennsylvania residents, according to the A…

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by Mac Bullock
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5 Jehovah's Witnesses Sexually Abused Child Family Members, PA AG Says 5 Jehovah's Witnesses Sexually Abused Child Family Members, PA AG Says
5 Jehovah's Witnesses Sexually Abused Child Family Members, PA AG Says Five additional members of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Pennsylvania are now facing multiple charges after allegedly sexually abusing children, Pennsylvania’s Acting Attorney General Michelle Henry announced at a press conference on Tuesday, February 7, 2023.  All of the men, between the ages of 42-74, abused family members between the ages of 5 and 15, the AG says. The defendants are being prosecuted by the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General for the following offenses: Marc Brown, 65, of Allegheny County, is alleged to have sexually abused two young sisters who were between the …

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by Jillian Pikora
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Four Jehovah's Witnesses Sexually Assaulted, Raped 19 Children In PA: Attorney General Four Jehovah's Witnesses Sexually Assaulted, Raped 19 Children In PA: Attorney General
Four Jehovah's Witnesses Sexually Assaulted, Raped 19 Children In PA: Attorney General Four Jehovah's Witnesses have been charged in connection with the sexual abuse of children, according to the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s office. All 19 victims were minors and members of Jehova’s Witness congregations at the time of the abuse. Two of the cases involve the men's daughters and all of the cases involve minors the men were very close with, authorities learned through the 49th Investigating Grand Jury and are charged by the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General.  The men charged in multiple rape and sexual assault cases are Jesse Hill, formerly of Berks County and now…

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by Jillian Pikora
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Jehovah's Witnesses Resume Trademark Door-Knocking For First Time Since Pandemic Jehovah's Witnesses Resume Trademark Door-Knocking For First Time Since Pandemic
Jehovah's Witnesses Resume Trademark Door-Knocking For First Time Since Pandemic Who's there? Jehovah's Witnesses will resume their trademark door-to-door ministry after a two-and-a-half-year suspension due to COVID-19. The Sept. 1 launch kicked off with a global campaign featuring an interactive program for Bible study. The decision to resume their door-to-door ministry marks the complete restoration of all pre- pandemic in-person activities for the nearly 1.3 million Jehovah’s Witnesses in the 12,000 congregations in the United States.  “We believe that the early decision to shut down all in-person activities for more than two years has saved many lives,” s…

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by Cecilia Levine