Cult Leader Who Claims To Be Jesus Arrested By Russian Security Forces

A former traffic police officer who

claims to be the reincarnation of Jesus

was arrested today in a special

operation staged by Russian security

agents.

Sergei Torop , who is known to his

followers as Vissarion , was arrested

along with two other leaders of the

group , Vadim Redkin and Vladimir

Vedernikov.

Russia’s investigative committee said

it would charge him with organising

an illegal religious organisation ,

alleging that the cult extorted money

from followers and subjected them to

emotional abuse .

A spokeswoman for Russia’s

Investigations Committee said

that the group is suspected of

“ establishing a religious

association whose activities

involve violence against

individuals and of inflicting

grievous bodily harm to two or

more people .

“ They used the money of [their

followers] and also used

psychological violence against

them, ” she is quoted as saying by

state media.

The 59- year- old cult leader , who lost his job as a traffic officer in 1989,

claimed he experienced an

“ awakening” as the Soviet regime

began to collapse. In 1991 he founded a movement now known as the Church of the Last Testament and has written a ten - volume ‘ sequel to the Bible’.

In 2002, told the Guardian UK : “ I am

not God . And it is a mistake to see

Jesus as God . But I am the living word of God the father. Everything that God wants to say, he says through me ” .

Several thousand followers live in a

series of remote hamlets in the

Krasnoyarsk region in Siberia .

Converts to the cult have included

professionals from across Russia as

well as pilgrims from abroad.

In an interview with the BBC three

years ago , Torop said: “ We have a

school of noble maidens here . We ’re

preparing girls to become future wives , future brides for worthy men .

“ She has to understand not to rise

above the man, not to be proud of her

independence but to be shy,

inconspicuous and weak .”

Torop is reported to have two wives

with six children. Veganism is

enforced and monetary exchange is

banned inside the commune .

Followers wear austere clothing and

count years starting from 1961, the

year of Vissarion ’ s birth , while

Christmas has been replaced by a

feast day on 14 January , his birthday .

Source: guardian.ng