Mexico Megachurch Leader Remains Jailed
Posted: Fri Aug 07, 2020 3:08 amVOA - Economy
FILE - In this July 15, 2019, photo, Naason Joaquin Garcia, the leader of a Mexico-based evangelical church with a worldwide membership, attends a bail review hearing in Los Angeles Superior Court in Los Angeles.
FILE - In this July 15, 2019, photo, Naason Joaquin Garcia, the leader of a Mexico-based evangelical church with a worldwide membership, attends a bail review hearing in Los Angeles Superior Court in Los Angeles.
Bail for the leader of a Mexican megachurch nearly doubled to $90 million after prosecutors expanded charges against him, including child rape, and possession of child pornography.
The new bail ruling by a Los Angeles judge ensures Naason Joaquin Garcia, of the Guadalajara-based La Luz del Mundo church (Light of the World church) will remain in custody until his trial.
Garcia, who says he has a million followers worldwide, was initially jailed on sex crimes charges last year with a $50 million bail.
The attorney general's office of California filed dozens of new felony charges, including rape, against Garcia and two co-defendants last weekÂ