Documentary record Bound by Fear
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Conviction Christian institutions & contexts Evangelical, Pentecostal, and independent Puerto Lempira, Gracias a Dios, and La Ceiba, Atlántida, Honduras · 2022

Honduras: Miskito community pastor convicted of trafficking and aggravated rape of a 15-year-old he took from her family under promise of paid childcare work

Record class

Core record

Evidence status

Convicted

Authority role

self-described leader of the Miskito community and evangelical church pastor

Organization

No organization assigned

Spiritual nexus

The defendant's standing as pastor and self-described community leader was the specific credential he invoked to obtain the family's trust and release of the child into his custody — the operative means by which the trafficking and subsequent rape were made possible.

  • Pastoral or clerical authority
  • Institutional obedience or isolation

Evidence structure

Proceedings

  1. 2022-12-09 · convicted at public trial; sentence individualization hearing scheduled

    Tribunal de Sentencia de La Ceiba, Fiscalía Regional del Litoral Atlántico, Honduras. Willie Sudia Gómez, who presented himself as a Miskito community leader and evangelical pastor, was found guilty at public trial of human trafficking (exploitation under conditions of slavery/servitude) and aggravated rape of a 15-year-old girl. He had persuaded her family in Puerto Lempira in June 2021 to let her accompany him to La Ceiba for paid childcare work and schooling; she received no pay, was beaten, and was raped in early August 2021. Under the applicable code, trafficking carries 8-10 years and aggravated rape 13 years 4 months-17 years; a sentencing hearing was set for 9 December 2022.

Documented coercion mechanisms

  • pastoral and community-leader standing used to persuade a low-income family to release their daughter into his care
  • false promise of paid work and schooling
  • physical violence and threats to secure compliance and silence

Primary record

Sources

official prosecutor release conviction report Ministerio Público de Honduras (2022) 'Condenan a pastor evangélico por trata de personas y violación agravada'.

'...quien dijo ser líder de la comunidad misquita y pastor de una iglesia evangélica, viajó a la ciudad de Puerto Lempira en junio de 2021.' English gloss: ...who said he was a leader of the Miskito community and pastor of an evangelical church, traveled to the city of Puerto Lempira in June 2021.

national press conviction report En La Plaza (2022) 'Pastor evangélico condenado por trata de personas y violación agravada'.

Confirms the trial conviction and reports the scheduled sentencing hearing of 9 December 2022 in La Ceiba.

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