Eva García de Joaquín—mother of Naasón Joaquín García, leader of the La Luz del Mundo Church—has requested bail from a federal judge in Manhattan. The 80-year-old offered five million dollars as collateral. This is in an attempt to face trial while free on charges of organized crime, sexual exploitation, and illicit enrichment.
Eva García was arrested last August in Los Angeles, California, pursuant to an arrest warrant issued by a federal court in New York. She was subsequently transferred to the Essex Correctional Facility in New Jersey, where she remains incarcerated.
The indictment against her alleges that, along with her son Naasón and other leaders of LLDM, she participated in a criminal network that, for three generations, used the religious structure to manipulate, exploit, and abuse parishioners.
The prosecution maintains that Eva García acted as an enabler and cover-up artist for the abuses committed within the organization, in addition to participating in money laundering and illicit enrichment schemes. Prosecutors claim to have testimonies that directly link her to these practices.
