Brazil: pastor who claimed to 'incorporate angels' sentenced to 136 years for abusing congregants, his wife to 95 for covering it up

Proceedings

1. Date in cited record · conviction and sentence

   5ª Vara Criminal de Anápolis, Tribunal de Justiça de Goiás (TJ-GO), Brazil. Vanderlei Antônio de Oliveira was sentenced to 136 years' imprisonment for the sexual abuse of vulnerable persons and the production of sexual content, and his wife Maria de Lurdes dos Santos Oliveira to 95 years for witnessing and covering up the offences — more than 230 years between them. He told emotionally vulnerable congregants that he could 'incorporate angels' to resolve their problems, held prayer sessions at which the supposed angels manifested through him and issued orders the victims were required to obey, and abused them during those rituals at the church and in victims' homes. He filmed the assaults and used the recordings to coerce victims into continuing what he termed 'spiritual campaigns'. The offences were reported in October 2023.

Documented coercion mechanisms

• the claim that he could 'incorporate angels' who spoke through him during prayer sessions
• orders issued in the purported voice of those angels, which victims were told they had to obey
• filming of the assaults, used to threaten victims into continued participation in what he called 'spiritual campaigns'
• targeting of emotionally vulnerable congregants seeking help with their problems