One in six children sexually abused in Jesus Army cult

A scheme to compensate members of a defunct religious cult known as the Jesus Army has identified 539 alleged perpetrators of abuse, and revealed about one in six children had been sexually abused. It is thought some of those accused, including 162 former leaders, may have taken up roles in different churches and Northamptonshire Police is liaising with relevant local authorities to see if any safeguarding action is required.

The Jesus Fellowship Church, which disbanded in 2019 after the BBC revealed allegations of widespread child abuse, recruited thousands of people to live in close-knit, puritanical communities in Northamptonshire, London and the Midlands. The Jesus Fellowship Community Trust (JFCT), which has been winding up the group's affairs, said it was sorry for “the severely detrimental impact” on people’s lives, and hoped the conclusion of the redress scheme would “provide an opportunity to look to the future” for all those affected during a 50-year period.

The findings have been been passed to the police. The trust's final report, external revealed:

One in six children were estimated to have been sexually abused

601 individuals applied for damages, though the trust recognised the true number of victims was likely to be greater

A total of £7.7m has been paid directly to applicants of the scheme

539 individuals were identified as perpetrators of alleged abuse

The trust accepted ultimate responsibility for 264 alleged abusers, 61% of them former leaders

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c0qejd0njpeo

Their Jesus must be proud of them all.