Survivors Accuse Mexican Federal Prosecutors of Covering Up Luz del Mundo Church Crimes

Mexico City — Two survivors and former members of the Luz del Mundo church have accused Mexico’s Federal Prosecutor’s Office of closing an investigation into the religious organization despite serious allegations of human trafficking, exploitation, and organized crime dating back to 2019.

Sochil Martin and Sharim Guzman, who spoke during an interview with Aristegui en Vivo, denounced what they called institutional cover-up after prosecutors closed the case without notifying victims.

“They closed the case. Then they notified us that they had closed the case and that there were no crimes,” Martin said.

She explained that the closure occurred in December without prior notice to victims, coinciding with the appointment of Ernestina Godoy as federal prosecutor following the departure of Alejandro Gertz Manero.

The case, initiated in 2019, includes serious allegations involving multiple families, some with victims who were minors at the time of the alleged crimes. Martin said the investigation gathered evidence of child, labor, and sexual exploitation, as well as alleged links to organized crime structures.

“We’re afraid for the families who reported… we’re worried about these families who are in Mexico,” she said.

Martin contrasted the Mexican investigation with legal proceedings in the United States, where church leader Naasón Joaquín García was sentenced in 2022 to 16 years and 8 months in prison after pleading guilty to sexual crimes against minors. U.S. authorities continue to investigate García and others in the organization for crimes including child trafficking and organized crime.

“What worries us most is the childhood within Luz del Mundo, these are boys and girls, young people, Mexicans who are in danger every day. It’s not a safe place, it’s a mafia, that’s how it’s categorized in the United States by the federal government,” Martin said.

Guzman provided a reconstruction of the legal process, explaining that the Federal Prosecutor’s Office initially classified the case as organized crime and referred it to the then-Specialized Prosecutor’s Office for Organized Crime. After seven years of investigation, victims expected the case to move to prosecution.

“The most terrible thing is that this closure of the file comes 14 days after the new federal prosecutor general took office,” Guzman said, referring to Godoy’s appointment.

He alleged that the current Mexican government maintains close relationships with Luz del Mundo, and that the organization has built a network of political relationships at various government levels, including officials, legislators, and operatives linked to different power structures.

Guzman specifically named former congressman Hamlet García Almaguer, Rogelio Zamora Barradas (father of former senator Israel Zamora), and Nicolás Menchaca, whom he identified as part of the organization’s internal structure and father of Madián Menchaca, an administrative judge in Jalisco where the case file was transferred.

According to Guzman, this structure has created conditions of institutional protection and facilitated decisions favorable to the organization’s interests.

He also pointed to the creation of a local political party linked to Luz del Mundo members. After a failed attempt at a national party called Humanismo Mexicano, he said the group now promotes a local party in Jalisco called the Humanist Party, allegedly related to figures like Emmanuel Reyes Carmona and Favio Castellanos.

“For the Mexican government, they are not criminals,” Guzman said, highlighting the difference in criteria between Mexico and the United States.

Regarding García, Guzman lamented that the church leader continues to be recognized in Mexico. “He remains an exemplary citizen who has the keys to the city of Tijuana, who has the keys to countless cities and who still remains a legal representative of Luz del Mundo,” he said.

Both survivors called on other victims to continue reporting despite the case closure in Mexico. “Let’s not stop reporting, don’t let the government win with its corruption,” Martin said.