A fugitive religious cult leader was recently arrested in Brazil after being accused of sexually abusing at least two girls at his camp in Minnesota over a period of ten years. Victor Arden Barnard, 53, a self-proclaimed minister and one of America’s most wanted criminals, was arrested on February 27, at an apartment in Pipa Beach, Brazil, where he was reportedly living with a 33-year-old woman.
Barnard faces 59 charges of misconduct after two women confessed they were part of a group that was forced to live with the minister at his River Road Fellowship Camp in Minnesota against their wishes. While one woman said she was abused from the age of 13 to 22, another said her abuse started when she was 12 and continued until she was 20. Most of the criminal counts against Barnard carry maximum sentences of 30 years in prison.
According to United States Marshals Service, the accused left Minnesota in 2010 only a while before the two women came forward with their complaints. By that time however, his whereabouts were unknown and some intelligence pointed towards the possibility that he and his followers were living in Washington State.
Police official Paulo Henrique Oliveira said Barnard moved to Brazil legally in 2012 before a nationwide arrest warrant was issued against him in April 2014. According to media reports, the minister was living at the apartment in Pipa Beach for at least six months. At the time of Barnard’s arrest, police officials also confiscated a personal computer, flash drives, cell phones, religious papers and documents from the condominium, located approximately 1,300 miles from Rio de Janeiro.
Sexual abuse charges were filed against Barnard in 2014, after the two women shared details about their lives at Shepherd’s Camp, which was comprised of a group of ten girls that he had chosen to live with him at his home in Minnesota. He allegedly kept the girls isolated and used religious coercion and intimidation to control them. According to one of his victims, she was told she would remain a virgin even if she had sex with Barnard because he was God-sent. The maidens group, with girls aged 12 to 24, were first-born daughters of their respective parents, who were handed over to Barnard so he could force them to have sex with him as many as five times a month over an entire decade.
In 2012, following years of sexual abuse, after her parents left her at Barnard’s camp when she was only 13-years-old, former cult member Lindsay Tornambe decided to inform authorities about the girls’ distress. Upon being told about Barnard’s recent arrest, Tornambe instantaneously broke down in tears.
She said, “It feels so surreal. I knew the day would come, but it finally came and it's almost numbing.”
Jess Schweiss, another cult member, shared with authorities her suffering after she was sent off to the camp at 12 years. Schweiss said when she tried telling her parents about the abuse, her mother refused to believe it.
Investigators are of the opinion that Barnard had abused several other girls during this period but they were unable to get anybody else to confess. The United States Supreme Court has already signed an extradition order to have Barnard stand trial in America for the charges he faces.
Photo Credits: CBS Minnesota & Daily Mail
