Sheriff: Signs of satanic activities present at church, according to statements
The Sheriff of Tangipahoa Parish said statements from some of the arrested members of the former congregation of the Hosanna Church in Ponchatoula have indicated that some sort of devil worship or witchcraft may have been at the center of alleged child sexual abuse that has resulted in eight arrests so far and that may have claimed as many as 30 victims.
Eight arrests have been made so far.
Investigators have said the victims are believed to range in age from one year old to 16 years of age.
Tangipahoa Sheriff Daniel Edwards said some members of the church have talked about pentagrams on the ground and candles near an area where children were abused.
“Some people believe that witchcraft was involved,” said Edwards. “Some people believe devil worship may have been involved, but others in the congregation said they were worshipping Christ.”
Arrested so far in the probe that began when former pastor Louis Lamonica showed up at the Livingston Parish Sheriff’s Office and began giving statements are: Lamonica, his wife Robbin, former church youth organizer Austin Bernard III, his wife Nicole, 21-year-old Ponchatoula resident Paul Fontenot, 24-year-old sheriff’s deputy Chris Labat, 54-year-old Lois Mowbray and 46-year-old Allen R. Pierson.
All those arrested, except for Mowbray, have been charged with sexual acts with children in some form or other.
Edwards said the happenings in the church were kept quiet, despite an alleged confession of sorts by Louis Lamonica.
“There have been people in the congregation that have related that Mr. Lamonica did step forward and give a type of repentance or confession to some of the acts that had been going on,” said Edwards.
He said church members told him that’s when many of the congregation began leaving the group, but apparently no one revealed what they had been told.
Investigators from seven agencies, including the FBI, are involved in the probe, with the FBI bringing in behavioral scientists to try to profile those involved and gain more understanding into the acts.
A phone call from Nicole Bernard about five weeks ago launched an investigation that suddenly got an abrupt boost when Louis Lamonica walked into the Livingston Parish Sheriff’s Office and began talking, according to investigators. Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff Daniel Edward said Lamonica spoke about having sex with children and teaching them to have sex with each other and with animals.
Lamonica’s alleged confession and statements led to the arrests of 24-year old Chris Labat, a Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff’s deputy and Austin Bernard, the former youth coordinator at the church on charges of the aggravated rape of a juvenile. Late Wednesday night Allen R. Pierson, 46, was arrested on similar charges.
There were four additional arrests Thursday, including Lamonica’s wife Robbin on charges of aggravated rape of a juvenile; Nicole Bernard, the wife of Austin Bernard; Mowbray and Fontenot.
Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff Daniel Edward said the number of arrests could increase and the number of victims could grow past two dozen. He said the alleged crimes began sometime in 1999 and continued until as late as six months ago.
Neighbors of the Hosanna Church described it as a once vibrant and thriving house of worship that saw its members dwindle to a scant few under the guidance of Lamonica.
Many described bizarre events and sounds that came from the compound.
A former church member said that in recent years, the church, where Lamonica's father once served as pastor, had dwindled to only a few secretive members and the younger Lamonica had split with his family, not allowing his mother to see her grandchildren or enter the church.
"He put a restraining order on this wonderful woman and simply refused to reconcile," said Kitty Morrison, who once taught when Hosanna Church had a school. "She hasn't seen the children in two years or more. People asked him to reconcile with his mother, who was heartbroken. His father influenced thousands of lives, including my brother, and helped him enter the ministry."
The Sheriff of Tangipahoa Parish said statements from some of the arrested members of the former congregation of the Hosanna Church in Ponchatoula have indicated that some sort of devil worship or witchcraft may have been at the center of alleged child sexual abuse that has resulted in eight arrests so far and that may have claimed as many as 30 victims.
Eight arrests have been made so far.
Investigators have said the victims are believed to range in age from one year old to 16 years of age.
Tangipahoa Sheriff Daniel Edwards said some members of the church have talked about pentagrams on the ground and candles near an area where children were abused.
“Some people believe that witchcraft was involved,” said Edwards. “Some people believe devil worship may have been involved, but others in the congregation said they were worshipping Christ.”
Arrested so far in the probe that began when former pastor Louis Lamonica showed up at the Livingston Parish Sheriff’s Office and began giving statements are: Lamonica, his wife Robbin, former church youth organizer Austin Bernard III, his wife Nicole, 21-year-old Ponchatoula resident Paul Fontenot, 24-year-old sheriff’s deputy Chris Labat, 54-year-old Lois Mowbray and 46-year-old Allen R. Pierson.
All those arrested, except for Mowbray, have been charged with sexual acts with children in some form or other.
Edwards said the happenings in the church were kept quiet, despite an alleged confession of sorts by Louis Lamonica.
“There have been people in the congregation that have related that Mr. Lamonica did step forward and give a type of repentance or confession to some of the acts that had been going on,” said Edwards.
He said church members told him that’s when many of the congregation began leaving the group, but apparently no one revealed what they had been told.
Investigators from seven agencies, including the FBI, are involved in the probe, with the FBI bringing in behavioral scientists to try to profile those involved and gain more understanding into the acts.
A phone call from Nicole Bernard about five weeks ago launched an investigation that suddenly got an abrupt boost when Louis Lamonica walked into the Livingston Parish Sheriff’s Office and began talking, according to investigators. Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff Daniel Edward said Lamonica spoke about having sex with children and teaching them to have sex with each other and with animals.
Lamonica’s alleged confession and statements led to the arrests of 24-year old Chris Labat, a Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff’s deputy and Austin Bernard, the former youth coordinator at the church on charges of the aggravated rape of a juvenile. Late Wednesday night Allen R. Pierson, 46, was arrested on similar charges.
There were four additional arrests Thursday, including Lamonica’s wife Robbin on charges of aggravated rape of a juvenile; Nicole Bernard, the wife of Austin Bernard; Mowbray and Fontenot.
Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff Daniel Edward said the number of arrests could increase and the number of victims could grow past two dozen. He said the alleged crimes began sometime in 1999 and continued until as late as six months ago.
Neighbors of the Hosanna Church described it as a once vibrant and thriving house of worship that saw its members dwindle to a scant few under the guidance of Lamonica.
Many described bizarre events and sounds that came from the compound.
A former church member said that in recent years, the church, where Lamonica's father once served as pastor, had dwindled to only a few secretive members and the younger Lamonica had split with his family, not allowing his mother to see her grandchildren or enter the church.
"He put a restraining order on this wonderful woman and simply refused to reconcile," said Kitty Morrison, who once taught when Hosanna Church had a school. "She hasn't seen the children in two years or more. People asked him to reconcile with his mother, who was heartbroken. His father influenced thousands of lives, including my brother, and helped him enter the ministry."
WTF ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT? I DIDN'T TELL THOSE HEATHENS TO DO A DAMN THING!
