34 ICSA TODAY 32
As a service to members, the ICSA News Desk sends out,
approximately once a week, an email that contains a noteworthy
article. If you have not signed up to receive the News Desk email,
please write ICSA at mail@icsamail.com In each ICSA Today issue,
the News Desk provides summaries and excerpts from recent
news articles. These articles are available to members in the ICSA
E-Library.
High court upholds life sentence for Aum member Katsuya
Takahashi
“The Tokyo High Court on Wednesday upheld a lower court
ruling that sentenced a former Aum Shinrikyo fugitive to life
in prison for his role in the doomsday cult’s 1995 sarin attacks
on the Tokyo subway system that killed 13 people and sickened
thousands. Katsuya Takahashi, 58, was found guilty by the Tokyo
District Court in April 2015 of murder and other crimes for his
role as a driver for one of the cult members who released the
deadly poison on a subway car on March 20, 1995. Takahashi was
also accused of involvement in three other attacks orchestrated
by Aum during its heyday in the early 1990s.… Takahashi was
apprehended in Tokyo in June 2012 after nearly 17 years on
the run. He was the last Aum Shinrikyo member on a special
nationwide wanted list...” (Japan Times, Kyodo, 09/07/16)
Russia’s high court bans Aum Shinrikyo
“The Russian Supreme Court has branded the Japanese
doomsday cult group Aum Shinrikyo a terrorist organization.
The Moscow court banned the infamous group on September
20. Aum Shinrikyo was founded by Shoko Asahara in 1984. It was
banned in many countries after its members carried out a deadly
sarin gas attack on the Tokyo subway in 1995.” (RadioFreeEurope/
RadioLiberty, 09/20/16)
Victimless prosecution used to jail man for coercive-control
offenses
“A 24-year-old who assaulted his girlfriend and stopped her
wearing makeup is believed to be the first person to be jailed
for coercive control offences using victimless prosecution.
On the night the man was arrested, he had started slapping
his 21-year-old girlfriend at a party and poured a can of lager
over her while he continued the ‘beating’ which resulted in
him bursting her eardrum… Controlling or coercive behavior
… could include: stopping a victim from socializing limiting
access to family, friends and finances monitoring a person via
online communication tools, for example using tracking apps
on mobile phones threatening to reveal or publish private
information… Victimless prosecution—also known as evidence-
based prosecution—is used by prosecutors in domestic violence
cases to convict abusers without the cooperation of an alleged
victim… After the injury to the victim’s ear, DCI Gadd said the
offender was arrested and interviewed. ‘He denied everything.’
CPS authorized the charges of section 20 assault, common
assault and engaging in controlling and coercive behavior.” (The
Telegraph, 09/09/16)
The Prophet of cult-like church near Owen Sound gets 18
months for assaulting members
“Fred King, known to his parishioners simply as ‘The Prophet,’
was sentenced today to 18 months’ jail followed by two years’
probation. His church, which came to public attention first
through a W5 television expose, has disbanded, according to
defense lawyer Paul Mergler. King, 57, pleaded guilty in May to
nine assaults which took place between Dec. 12, 1988, and Aug.
10, 2008, mostly in Chatsworth Township or elsewhere in Grey
County, and in one case in Peel Region, involving four church
members... King’s victims in the charges he admitted to include
three males between 11 and 19 years of age at the time, and
Carol Christie. She and husband John Christie did not attend the
sentencing because they attended a funeral instead… Letters
from three of King’s children, all adults now, and from his wife,
who attended court Wednesday, were submitted for the judge
to consider. They work for the family printing business too. ‘The
church has been disbanded. So all of those people are there
because they want to be,’ Mergler said. King always ‘adamantly
denied’ any of the sexual charges, he noted. But his crimes, court
case precedents and terms of the Criminal Code all ‘cry out for
a jail term’ in this case, he said. ‘Clearly the time for impunity
has [passed].’ Fred King’s brother, Judson King, is charged with
assault with a weapon, sexual assault and three counts of assault
between 1981 and 2007. He is to appear in assignment court in
the Superior Court of Justice Nov. 7.” (Vancouver Sun, 09/14/16)
A new documentary looks at role of women in the Gloriavale
community
“The Gloriavale community on the West Coast of New Zealand’s
South Island has been described as a cult that is more sinister
than the idyllic location would lead you to believe. Beyond
the rolling green hills and snow-capped mountains is a very
uniformed and regimented Christian community. It is isolated
and secular and the 500 members have very little contact with
the outside world. Members say they don’t want to associate
themselves with the evil, adultery, drug use and fornication that
the outside world engages in… A new documentary, Gloriavale:
A Woman’s Place, has explored life inside the community
and how being a wife is the top job for a woman. Dove Love,
22, features in the documentary and she is longing to get
married. She has been doing the washing for everybody in the
community and she’s ready to be promoted to the role of a wife,
where she is required to submit herself to her husband… Once
a couple is married, and a woman vows to submit while the man
vows to be the leader, they embrace for a number of minutes.
They are then carried to a ‘consummation room’ immediately
where they are expected to lose their virginities… Members of
Gloriavale don’t get many choices—they are told what to wear
and where to work. Marriages are arranged when members are
as young as 12, and Gloriavale leader Neville Cooper believes
that’s the age a girl becomes a woman… A lot of controversy
surrounded the community when Cooper, who changed his
name to Hopeful Christian, was jailed on sexual abuse charges
in 1995. His son and a young woman fled the community and
testified against Cooper. Those who leave the community are
News Desk
As a service to members, the ICSA News Desk sends out,
approximately once a week, an email that contains a noteworthy
article. If you have not signed up to receive the News Desk email,
please write ICSA at mail@icsamail.com In each ICSA Today issue,
the News Desk provides summaries and excerpts from recent
news articles. These articles are available to members in the ICSA
E-Library.
High court upholds life sentence for Aum member Katsuya
Takahashi
“The Tokyo High Court on Wednesday upheld a lower court
ruling that sentenced a former Aum Shinrikyo fugitive to life
in prison for his role in the doomsday cult’s 1995 sarin attacks
on the Tokyo subway system that killed 13 people and sickened
thousands. Katsuya Takahashi, 58, was found guilty by the Tokyo
District Court in April 2015 of murder and other crimes for his
role as a driver for one of the cult members who released the
deadly poison on a subway car on March 20, 1995. Takahashi was
also accused of involvement in three other attacks orchestrated
by Aum during its heyday in the early 1990s.… Takahashi was
apprehended in Tokyo in June 2012 after nearly 17 years on
the run. He was the last Aum Shinrikyo member on a special
nationwide wanted list...” (Japan Times, Kyodo, 09/07/16)
Russia’s high court bans Aum Shinrikyo
“The Russian Supreme Court has branded the Japanese
doomsday cult group Aum Shinrikyo a terrorist organization.
The Moscow court banned the infamous group on September
20. Aum Shinrikyo was founded by Shoko Asahara in 1984. It was
banned in many countries after its members carried out a deadly
sarin gas attack on the Tokyo subway in 1995.” (RadioFreeEurope/
RadioLiberty, 09/20/16)
Victimless prosecution used to jail man for coercive-control
offenses
“A 24-year-old who assaulted his girlfriend and stopped her
wearing makeup is believed to be the first person to be jailed
for coercive control offences using victimless prosecution.
On the night the man was arrested, he had started slapping
his 21-year-old girlfriend at a party and poured a can of lager
over her while he continued the ‘beating’ which resulted in
him bursting her eardrum… Controlling or coercive behavior
… could include: stopping a victim from socializing limiting
access to family, friends and finances monitoring a person via
online communication tools, for example using tracking apps
on mobile phones threatening to reveal or publish private
information… Victimless prosecution—also known as evidence-
based prosecution—is used by prosecutors in domestic violence
cases to convict abusers without the cooperation of an alleged
victim… After the injury to the victim’s ear, DCI Gadd said the
offender was arrested and interviewed. ‘He denied everything.’
CPS authorized the charges of section 20 assault, common
assault and engaging in controlling and coercive behavior.” (The
Telegraph, 09/09/16)
The Prophet of cult-like church near Owen Sound gets 18
months for assaulting members
“Fred King, known to his parishioners simply as ‘The Prophet,’
was sentenced today to 18 months’ jail followed by two years’
probation. His church, which came to public attention first
through a W5 television expose, has disbanded, according to
defense lawyer Paul Mergler. King, 57, pleaded guilty in May to
nine assaults which took place between Dec. 12, 1988, and Aug.
10, 2008, mostly in Chatsworth Township or elsewhere in Grey
County, and in one case in Peel Region, involving four church
members... King’s victims in the charges he admitted to include
three males between 11 and 19 years of age at the time, and
Carol Christie. She and husband John Christie did not attend the
sentencing because they attended a funeral instead… Letters
from three of King’s children, all adults now, and from his wife,
who attended court Wednesday, were submitted for the judge
to consider. They work for the family printing business too. ‘The
church has been disbanded. So all of those people are there
because they want to be,’ Mergler said. King always ‘adamantly
denied’ any of the sexual charges, he noted. But his crimes, court
case precedents and terms of the Criminal Code all ‘cry out for
a jail term’ in this case, he said. ‘Clearly the time for impunity
has [passed].’ Fred King’s brother, Judson King, is charged with
assault with a weapon, sexual assault and three counts of assault
between 1981 and 2007. He is to appear in assignment court in
the Superior Court of Justice Nov. 7.” (Vancouver Sun, 09/14/16)
A new documentary looks at role of women in the Gloriavale
community
“The Gloriavale community on the West Coast of New Zealand’s
South Island has been described as a cult that is more sinister
than the idyllic location would lead you to believe. Beyond
the rolling green hills and snow-capped mountains is a very
uniformed and regimented Christian community. It is isolated
and secular and the 500 members have very little contact with
the outside world. Members say they don’t want to associate
themselves with the evil, adultery, drug use and fornication that
the outside world engages in… A new documentary, Gloriavale:
A Woman’s Place, has explored life inside the community
and how being a wife is the top job for a woman. Dove Love,
22, features in the documentary and she is longing to get
married. She has been doing the washing for everybody in the
community and she’s ready to be promoted to the role of a wife,
where she is required to submit herself to her husband… Once
a couple is married, and a woman vows to submit while the man
vows to be the leader, they embrace for a number of minutes.
They are then carried to a ‘consummation room’ immediately
where they are expected to lose their virginities… Members of
Gloriavale don’t get many choices—they are told what to wear
and where to work. Marriages are arranged when members are
as young as 12, and Gloriavale leader Neville Cooper believes
that’s the age a girl becomes a woman… A lot of controversy
surrounded the community when Cooper, who changed his
name to Hopeful Christian, was jailed on sexual abuse charges
in 1995. His son and a young woman fled the community and
testified against Cooper. Those who leave the community are
News Desk
