Saturday, November 14, 2009

Evangelist Sentenced to 175 Years for Sex Crimes

I never ceased to be amazed at the manner in which people allow themselves to be suckered by con-artists who wrap themselves in the flag of Christianity so that they can rob people blind. Or, worse yet, engage in activities of sexual predators. Naturally, all too often these perverts and shysters rant and rave against LGBT citizens and use the Bible as their weapon of choice in attacking us. Thus, it is nice to see one such false Christian - Tony Alamo, a self proclaimed prophet - gets his just rewards under the all too flawed judicial system. He's be sentenced to 175 years for sex crimes committed at his cult's compound shown in the photo above. Here are highlights from the Washington Post:
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Evangelist Tony Alamo used his stature as a self-proclaimed prophet to force underage girls into sham marriages with him, controlling his followers with their fears of eternal suffering. But the judge who sentenced Alamo on Friday to 175 years in prison for child sexual abuse warned of another kind of justice awaiting the aging evangelist. "Mr. Alamo, one day you will face a higher and a greater judge than me," U.S. District Judge Harry F. Barnes told the preacher. "May he have mercy on your soul."
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Barnes leveled the maximum sentence against the 75-year-old, who preyed on followers' young daughters and took child "brides" as young as age 8. A jury convicted Alamo in July on a 10-count indictment accusing him of taking the girls across state lines for sex.
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Alamo, who has made millions through his ministry, also must pay $250,000 in fines. He will return to court for a Jan. 13 hearing at which Barnes will determine if the five women who testified about their sexual abuse will be paid restitution. Federal prosecutors say an expert believes each one should get $2.7 million for the physical and mental abuse they endured.
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It is sickening to see these professional Christians enrich themselves at the expense of the ignorant and easily manipulated. While Alamo was a sexual predator, many others such as James Dobson, Tony Perkins, Maggie Gallagher, and Pat Robertson are insidious predators in a different way. They are all false Christians in my opinion.

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