"This was a case in which a church leader and his accomplices preyed on the innocence and youth of young victims.  Thank you to the special agents who worked with the victims and their families to fully investigate these crimes against children," said California Statewide Law Enforcement Association (CSLEA) President Alan Barcelona.

OAKLAND –On June 8, 2022, Naasón Joaquín García, the leader of La Luz del Mundo was sentenced to 16 years and 8 months in prison. García will also be required to register as a sex offender for life.  His guilty plea and sentencing are the result of a multiyear investigation and prosecution led by the California Department of Justice. García pleaded guilty to multiple felony counts of sexual assault involving three separate minors. Prior to issuing the sentence, the court heard directly from survivors who provided impact statements for the court’s consideration.

The court previously sentenced Susana Medina Oaxaca — who pleaded guilty to assault likely to cause great bodily injury — to one year of probation in addition to time served in jail and on house arrest, as well as six months of psychiatric counseling.

Alondra Ocampo — who was convicted of three felony counts of contact with a minor for the purposes of committing a sexual offense and one count of forcible sexual penetration in 2020 — will be sentenced at a later date.

The case was prosecuted by the California Department of Justice’s Special Prosecutions Section with assistance from the California Highway Patrol, as well as the California Department of Justice’s Division of Law Enforcement and Appeals, Writs, and Trials Section.