Barbara Pletusher

The authorities raided the place because they have information that these people were suffering from human trafficking. Some of the children and women escaped and ran to the police to present legal complaints about treatments that they were receiving inside the community. For example, marriage between underage kids, also pregnancy without the consent of the children.

Now, what the authorities did yesterday was to rescue around 160 children and teenagers that might have been victims of human trafficking and other crimes. And they detained one police accused that he might be leaking information to LEPTAHOR to let them know that the authorities were trying to investigate them.

The information available right now is that some of the nationalities are Canada and the United States, and they were brought in here to Guatemala, in some cases with the consent of their parents that were part already of the community.

It's mainly religious. They say to the authorities that they study the Bible. They want to live by their own rules, like children don't go to school. They are educated inside of this farm. The women and children are totally covered with clothes.

Yes, sounds like a cult. And according to the authorities, it's about 500 people that live in this area. And 160 were underage children.

Yes, yes. Yesterday, the prosecutor informed that they have a dog there and they found a cage with a body. The suspicious is that it's an underage or a baby. We spoke with some of the authorities and they were explaining that they receive information that some of the teenagers died giving birth and sometimes the bodies were buried inside the farm. Yesterday, the U.S.

community in Guatemala released a statement saying that they take distance from Leftahar. They don't have anything to do with them and they say that they will help if they can afford something.

Right now, this investigation is ongoing. Actually, the raid ended last night, almost at 11 p.m. So the prosecutors mentioned that all these crimes might be committed by one person of the community, one leader. But at the moment, they haven't been detained.

People were suffering from human trafficking, marriage between underage kids, also pregnancy without the consent of the children.