Guatemala authorities rescue minors from extremist orthodox Jewish group following abuse allegations – JURIST

The Public Prosecutor’s office in Guatemala conducted an operation at the compound of Lev Tahor, an extremist Jewish sect, on Friday. Following reports of abuse within the group, the authorities performed a search and seizure, taking at least 40 women and 160 minors into protective custody. Authorities also discovered at least one skeleton of a minor.

Lev Tahor is an ultra-orthodox organization, that moved to the village of El Amatillo in the region of Santa Rosa in 2016, after authorities carried out raids at their Guatemala City headquarters. The group was founded in 1988 in Jerusalem, by Shlomo Helbrans, and first came to Guatemala in 2013.

As per the Office of the Public Prosecutor, the authorities received complaints on November 11 from eleven minors who had fled the sect, with an investigation revealing that there were occurrences of forced marriages, child abuse, rape, and other crimes within the group. Additionally, a deputy commissioner of the National Civil Police was arrested for allegedly leaking information to a senior member of Lev Tahor.

These are not the first accusations of abuse levied against the group, with a court in Mexico, where the group also maintains its presence,  ordering for the arrest of members following investigations into alleged child abuse.  Further, a New York court also convicted two members of Lev Tahor in 2022 under charges of kidnapping, where the accused had smuggled minors from the US to Mexico.

Lev Tahor has previously denounced investigations against it by Guatemalan authorities, accusing them of persecution and harassment. Following the raid, the Prosecutor’s Office stated that the investigation was not motivated by any religious or anti-minority intentions, with the focus remaining on investigating abuse within the sect.