Los Angeles Times - September 19, 2010
Authorities search for missing members of cult-like Palmdale group
Five adults and at least eight children are sought in what a CHP alert describes as a potential suicide plot. A sheriff's captain points out, however, that documents left behind don't mention suicide and the group has no history of harming themselves.
By Patrick J. McDonnell, Richard Winton and Robert Faturechi
Authorities launched a major search for five members of a cult-like group in Palmdale and at least eight children who were reported missing after leaving a prayer meeting early Saturday in a feared mass suicide plot, Los Angeles County sheriff's officials said.
The group was believed to be traveling in three vehicles: a white 2004 Nissan Quest, a 1995 white Mercury Villager and a newer-model, silver Toyota Tundra, according to the California Highway Patrol, which issued an alert for them.
"It is believed, through further investigation, that [their] intentions are to commit mass suicide," said a CHP alert, which was based on information from sheriff's officials.
But Sheriff's Capt. Mike Parker pointed out that documents left behind by group members do not specifically mention suicide, though they do refer to "going to heaven" and the "end of the world." He added that the missing people have no history of violence or harming themselves.
Authorities began the search after the husbands of two group members walked into a Palmdale sheriff's station at 2 p.m. carrying a bag of belongings the missing people left behind, including identification, cash, cellphones, deeds to homes and letters, officials said.
"The letters essentially state that they [the missing persons] are all going to heaven shortly to meet Jesus and their deceased relatives," the alert said. "Numerous letters found say goodbye to their relatives."
Parker said one of the husbands told deputies that he feared that the adults had been "brainwashed."
The group was last seen on East Avenue R4 in Palmdale at about 1 a.m. Saturday, the CHP alert said.
Sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore said the children were ages 3 to 17, including six boys and two girls.
"We do not think this is a hoax. We don't know that this is a potential suicide, but we know that it's real and we're going to find them," Whitmore said.
The adults, including three sisters, belong to a religious sect that broke off from a Palmdale church whose name was unknown, Whitmore said.
Among those missing, the CHP alert said, is Reyna Marisol Chicas, 32, described as the leader of the group.
But as sheriff's patrol cars and several helicopters were scouring the Antelope Valley for the group, former neighbors of Chicas painted a different picture, describing the Salvadoran immigrant as a simple woman who hadn't been schooled beyond the fifth grade and could hardly keep a job let alone have a religious following.
"She was a good mother, always with her kids. She was not fanatic," said Ricardo Giron, 51.
Giron said his family was close to the Chicases. They said Chicas often lied about minor things -- like her job status -- but was a devoted mother. Their children would ride bikes and play computer games together -- and on more than one occasion took camping trips to Yosemite with other families.
Chicas would baby-sit, caring for the Giron children along with her own, Ezequel and Genisis, who authorities said were also missing Saturday night.
"Everywhere she was going, she was taking her kids with her," he said. "You felt like you could trust her."
But when Chicas and her husband separated four years ago, she became increasingly religious, Giron said. Chicas began attending a local church several times a week, spending several hours there each visit.
Giron's wife, Jisela, attended a few times and said Chicas was always there, her children in tow. The church, she said, was a typical Christian congregation. Sermons were in Spanish. Beyond the women dressing modestly, she said, there was nothing that made the largely Latino congregation stand out.
But she said some congregants would meet separately, in their own prayer groups outside the church, and among those groups beliefs could vary. Chicas, she said, never took on a leadership position at the church beyond greeter at Sunday services, but may have been more assertive within a prayer group.
Chicas had slowly severed social ties with the couple -- no longer wanting to drink or go out as they used to.
They last saw her at the church about six months ago.
"This is hard to believe. Cult leader? She was not a serious person, very simple, not professional, not prepared" said Giron.
Relatives of one of the missing women gathered at the Palmdale sheriffs station early Sunday morning.
One woman said her sister-in-law has been with the prayer group in question for some time, and that they often take "trips to the mountains to pray."
Her sister-in-law, she said, told her she was going on a religious trip this weekend and would return Sunday morning.
Sheriff's officials confirmed that this group had taken at least one prayer trip before, but that this trip seemed unusual.
"They've done late-night prayer vigils before, but not in the context of these elements" Parker said. "IDs, money, goodbye notes, all that stuff left behind, put in a purse."
For now, authorities are scouring lit areas, but will have to wait for daylight to tackle more remote terrain.
"At first light you're going to see a helicopter," Parker said. "They're searching what they can for now."
This article was found at:
http://www.latimes.com/la-me-0919-suicide-20100919,0,7901802.story
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CW 6 - San Diego September 18, 2010
Eight Children & Four Adults Missing with Palmdale Cult Leader
PALMDALE - Five adults and eight children from Palmdale, including one whom authorities described as a "cult-like leader,'' are missing under "questionable circumstances,'' but there's no evidence they are planning to commit group suicide, a Los Angeles sheriff's captain said.
However, an all-out search was in progress Saturday night in the Antelope Valley area to check on their welfare, said sheriff's Capt. Mike Parker.
All are El Salvadoran immigrants, and left behind evidence they are waiting for the Rapture, or end of the world, he said.
The situation began at 1:45 p.m. when two husbands went to the Lancaster sheriff's station to report that their wives were missing, he said.
The husbands said they believe their wives had joined a cult-like group that broke off from an unidentified Palmdale church, he said.
One of them said he had been told by the leader, Reyna Marisol Chicas, 32, to pray over a purse that was in a Palmdale residence.
After several hours, the man became curious and opened the purse. Inside, he found five cell phones, cash, beads, titles to vehicles and property, identification cards and numerous letters written in Spanish and English.
Parker stressed there was no indication of a crime, but that authorities "do believe vulnerable people have been led to an unknown area in the Antelope Valley,'' and that based on the letters, they are ``possibly awaiting the Rapture or some catastrophic event.''
"There's no evidence they want to harm themselves,'' he added.
However, the husbands have expressed that concern, he said.
He said the missing persons include three sisters, ages 30, 32 and 40, a 19-year-old son and eight children ages 3 to 17.
A news outlet called Breaking News Online identified them as: leader Reyna Marisol Chica, 32; Ezequel Chicas, 15; Genisis Chicas, 12; Norma Isela Serrano, 31; Bryan Rivera, 16; Jose Clavel, 15; Stephanie Serrano, 12; Crysta lClavel, 3; Alma Alicia Miranda Pleitez, 28; Hugo Tejada, 3; Jonathan Tejada,17; Martha Clavel, 39; and Roberto Tejada, 18.
They are believed to be in three vehicles: a white 2004 Nissan Quest,license plate number 6LJF396; a white 1995 Mercury Villager with license plate 3NFX290; and a newer model silver Toyota Tundra pickup with license plate 7P19309.
"Based on family statements and what we found in evidence leads us to believe they are in the Antelope Valley rather than elsewhere, but don't know that for a fact,'' Parker said.
According to the husbands, the families met through a Christian church in Palmdale, then broke away and began practicing "non-traditional religious beliefs,'' and the husbands said they believed the members had been "brainwashed'' by a cult-like group leader, Parker said.
Six months ago, the group went to the Vasquez Rocks in northern Los Angeles County in anticipation of a major earthquake or some other disaster, but one of the members revealed where they were and as a result they ended their vigil and the member was ostracized from the group, Parker said.
He said the letters found in the purse include such terms as "taking refuge'' and "going to heaven'' and that they want their families to join them, and investigators believe they are waiting for the Rapture.
"There's no history of violence in the family and no indication from what was left in the purse to believe they want to commit mass suicide or any kind of suicide,'' he said.
The suicide references have come from their worried family members, he said.
"The sheriff's department wants to ensure these people are safe, and our goal is to find them,'' Parker said. "The fact that minor children are involved in particular raises our level of concern.''
The sheriff's department, police, California Highway Patrol and other law enforcement agencies were all involved in the search in the Antelope Valley and beyond, he said.
He stressed the group is not in any trouble or suspected of a crime, and that anyone who knows where they are should call the sheriff's Palmdale station at (661) 272-2400 or Crimestoppers at (800) 222-8477.
This article was found at:
http://www.sandiego6.com/news/local/story/Eight-Children-Four-Adults-Missing-with-Palmdale/9Xef5KdsEUaf_mfwxtFGlg.cspx
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Los Angeles Times - September 19, 2010
Missing members of 'cult-like' Palmdale church found alive and well, sheriff says
by Robert Faturechi in Palmdale
The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said Sunday that it had found the 13 members of a "cult-like" church in Jackie Robinson Park east of Palmdale.
All were alive and well, according to the department.
A massive search for the members began Saturday after family members contacted authorities, saying they feared the group was planning a mass suicide.
The last time the group had been seen was when a deputy reported seeing them while on patrol at Knight High School in Palmdale around 3 a.m. Saturday. That sighting was before the group had been reported missing, according to Sheriff's Capt. Mike Parker.
The group members, authorities said, were very cooperative and told the deputy they were praying to end school violence and sexual immorality. All appeared to be there of their own free will, Parker said.
Parker said they may have visited other schools or other locations where their prayer goals were relevant.
News of the sighting came as officials searched high desert areas for the 13 people connected to what authorities described as a "cult-like" Palmdale church.
The group was believed to be traveling in three vehicles: a white 2004 Nissan Quest, a 1995 white Mercury Villager and a newer-model silver Toyota Tundra, according to the California Highway Patrol, which issued an alert for them.
Parker said that documents left behind by group members do not specifically mention suicide, though they do refer to "going to heaven" and the "end of the world." He added that the missing people have no history of violence or harming themselves.
Authorities began the search after the husbands of two group members walked into a Palmdale sheriff's station at 2 p.m. Saturday carrying a bag of belongings that the missing people left behind, including identification, cash, cellphones, deeds to homes, and letters, officials said.
"The letters essentially state that they [the missing persons] are all going to heaven shortly to meet Jesus and their deceased relatives," the alert said. "Numerous letters found say goodbye to their relatives."
Parker said one of the husbands told deputies that he feared that the adults had been "brainwashed." Sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore said the children were ages 3 to 17, including six boys and two girls.
The adults, including three sisters, belong to a religious sect that broke off from a Palmdale church whose name was unknown, Whitmore said.
Among those missing, the CHP alert said, is Reyna Marisol Chicas, 32, described as the leader of the group.
But former neighbors of Chicas painted a different picture, describing the Salvadoran immigrant as a simple woman who hadn't been schooled beyond the fifth grade and could hardly keep a job let alone have a religious following.
"She was a good mother, always with her kids. She was not fanatic," said Ricardo Giron, 51.
Giron said his family was close to Chicas' family. Giron's family members said that Chicas often lied about minor things -- like her job status -- but was a devoted mother. Their children would ride bikes and play computer games together, they said, and on more than one occasion took camping trips to Yosemite with other families.
Giron said Chicas would baby-sit, caring for the Giron children along with her own, Ezequel and Genisis, who authorities said were also missing Saturday night.
"Everywhere she was going, she was taking her kids with her," he said. "You felt like you could trust her."
When Chicas and her husband separated four years ago, she became increasingly religious, Giron said. She began attending a local church several times a week, spending several hours there each visit, he said.
This article was found at:
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2010/09/missing-members-of-cult-like-palmdale-church-found-alive-and-well-sheriff-says.html
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