Longtime head of Mexican megachurch is indicted in New York on federal
sex trafficking charges
[September 11, 2025]
By LARRY NEUMEISTER
NEW YORK (AP) — The longtime head of a Mexican megachurch who is serving
more than 16 years in a California prison for sexually abusing young
followers has been charged with racketeering conspiracy and sex
trafficking for allegedly victimizing members of the church for decades,
federal authorities said Wednesday.
A New York grand jury returned the indictment alleging that Naasón
Joaquín García, 56, and five others, including his 79-year-old mother,
exploited the church for decades, enabling the systemic sexual abuse of
children and women for the sexual gratification of García and his
father, who died in 2014.
García is the head of La Luz del Mundo (The Light of the World), which
claims to have 5 million followers in more than 50 countries. Believers
consider him to be the “apostle” of Jesus Christ.
The newly unsealed indictment said the criminal activity included the
creation of photos and videos of child sexual abuse and had begun after
the church was founded a century ago by Garcia's grandfather, who died
in 1964. Garcia's father, Samuel Joaquin Flores, led the church from
then until his death.
Sexual abuse alleged to have occurred for over 50 years
The indictment said the sexual abuse went on for so many decades that
many of the grandfather's victims were mothers of girls and women abused
by García's father and many of the father's victims were the mothers of
girls and women abused by García.
The indictment listed 13 female victims anonymously and specifically,
describing when they were allegedly attacked while they were under the
age of consent. Some victims, it said, were as young as 13.
The church is based in Guadalajara, Mexico, and there are church
locations throughout the United States, including in California, New
York, Nevada, Texas, Georgia, Indiana, North Carolina, South Carolina,
New Jersey and Washington, D.C., according to the indictment.
In a court document seeking detention of all indicted without bail,
prosecutors said sex trafficking of women and children occurred as a
result of the case in the U.S., Mexico, Europe, Asia, Africa and
elsewhere.
García was taken into federal custody early Wednesday in Chino,
California, where he is serving a sentence after pleading guilty in 2022
to two state counts.
Defense lawyer calls charges ‘reckless campaign of government
overreach’
In a statement, attorney Alan Jackson, representing García, called the
indictment the result of “a reckless campaign of government overreach.”
He said the charges were “a rehashing of old, recycled claims that have
been made before, scrutinized before, and ultimately debunked and
disproven before.”
“We categorically deny these charges," Jackson said, adding that the
defense will expose them as “desperate, unfounded, recycled and driven
by ulterior motives.”
Federal authorities said García used his spiritual sway to have sex with
girls and young women who were told it would lead to their salvation —
or damnation if they refused. His efforts were enabled by others,
including his mother, who helped groom the girls to be sexually abused,
they said.
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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 on July 15, 2019. (Al Seib/Los Angeles
Times via AP, Pool, File)
Prosecutors said García also directed girls, boys and women to
engage in group sex with each other, often in his presence, for his
sexual gratification.
Sometimes, they added, he required the children to wear masks so
they would not realize they were having incestual sex.
García's 79-year-old mother portrayed as key member of conspiracy
Besides García, his mother, Eva García De Joaquín, was taken into
custody in Los Angeles. A third defendant, Joram Nunez Joaquín, was
arrested in Chicago, authorities said. Three others were at large
and were believed to be in Mexico, where authorities said
extraditions would be sought.
The indictment said De Joaquín on at least one occasion held down a
girl so that her husband — García's father — could rape her.
Nunez Joaquín falsely held himself out as a lawyer working on behalf
of the church as he tried to prevent sexual abuse victims from
reporting the abuse to law enforcement, the indictment said.
A message seeking comment was sent to the law firm representing
Nunez Joaquín. It was not immediately clear who would represent De
Joaquín at a Los Angeles court appearance Wednesday.
According to the indictment, two of the defendants and others tried
to destroy evidence and prevent victims of the sexual abuse from
speaking to law enforcement after García was arrested.
It said they pressured victims to sign false declarations
disclaiming that any abuse occurred, drafted and distributed sermons
stating that all sexual abuse victims were lying and reinforced
church doctrine that doubting the apostle was a sin punishable by
eternal damnation.
García family alleged to have lived opulent lifestyle
The indictment said church followers were required to forward a
portion of their income to the church, a portion of which would fund
the García family's extravagant lifestyle, which included luxury
cars, watches, designer clothing and first-class travel worldwide.
In a release, U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton said García and the others
“exploited the faith of their followers to prey upon them.”
He added: “When they were confronted, they leveraged their religious
influence and financial power to intimidate and coerce victims into
remaining silent about the abuse they had suffered.”
Ricky J. Patel, the head of the New York office of Homeland Security
Investigations, said the charges resulted from a “yearslong
investigation that spanned the country and involved the support of
dozens of courageous victims.”
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