Editing Naasón Joaquín García (section)

== Arrest and legal proceedings ==

On 3 June 2019, Joaquín García was arrested and charged by prosecutors from [[Los Angeles County, California|Los Angeles County]] with sexual abuse charges involving minors.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Garcia |first1=Blanca |title=La Luz del Mundo Church Leader Accused of Sex Crimes |url=https://www.independent.com/2019/06/09/la-luz-del-mundo-church-leader-accused-of-sex-crimes/ |accessdate=3 March 2020 |work=Santa Barbara Independent |date=9 June 2019 |archive-date=2 March 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200302162914/https://www.independent.com/2019/06/09/la-luz-del-mundo-church-leader-accused-of-sex-crimes/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Cosgrove |first1=Jaclyn |last2=Johnson |first2=Reed |last3=Miller |first3=Leila |title=Leader of La Luz Del Mundo religious group arrested on suspicion of rape, child porn |url=https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-la-luz-del-mundo-charges-abuse-20190604-story.html |accessdate=3 March 2020 |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=4 June 2019 |archive-date=11 April 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200411172640/https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-la-luz-del-mundo-charges-abuse-20190604-story.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Miller |first1=Leila |title=Sex abuse charges against La Luz del Mundo leader are the 'tip of the iceberg,' prosecutors say |url=https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-luz-del-mundo-bail-201906-story.html |accessdate=3 March 2020 |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=22 June 2019 |archive-date=11 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191011101030/https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-luz-del-mundo-bail-201906-story.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Susana Medina Oaxaca and Alondra Ocampo were also charged. Joaquín García was held on $50&nbsp;million bail, Ocampo on $25&nbsp;million, and Oaxaca remained free on bail. A fourth defendant, Azalea Rangel Melendez, who was previously charged with rape, remained at large. In addition, a federal lawsuit against the church and Joaquín García alleging that he and his father regularly sexually abused a Southern California girl from the time she was twelve until she was eighteen was still pending {{As of|2020|07|lc=on}}.<ref>{{cite web |title=Child rape charges refiled against Mexican megachurch leader |url=https://apnews.com/b980dca56ef04de3f6f07fbfe672fac6 |website=AP News |accessdate=4 August 2020 |date=31 July 2020 |archive-date=2 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200802215615/https://apnews.com/b980dca56ef04de3f6f07fbfe672fac6 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Two days before his trial in June 2022, Joaquín Garcia pleaded guilty to three charges related to sexually abusing children.<ref name="La Luz del Mundo church leader pleads guilty to sex abuse charges">{{Cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2022-06-03/as-sex-abuse-trial-starts-proceedings-could-pull-back-curtain-on-la-luz-del-mundo-church?_amp=true|title=La Luz del Mundo church leader pleads guilty to sex abuse charges|date=2022-06-03|work=Los Angeles Times|access-date=2022-06-04|issn=0458-3035|archive-date=2022-06-04|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220604020748/https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2022-06-03/as-sex-abuse-trial-starts-proceedings-could-pull-back-curtain-on-la-luz-del-mundo-church?_amp=true|url-status=live}}</ref> On 8 June 2022, he was convicted and sentenced to 16&nbsp;years and 8&nbsp;months in prison.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/mexican-megachurch-leader-faces-16-years-prison-85260319 |title=Mexican megachurch leader gets more than 16 years for abuse |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220723215808/https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/mexican-megachurch-leader-faces-16-years-prison-85260319 |archive-date=23 July 2022 |website=ABC News |date=8 June 2022 }}</ref>

He was transferred to [[North Kern State Prison]] for evaluations to determine his placement within the prison system.<ref>{{Cite news|title=The Light of the World: Naasón Joaquín is changed from jail for this reason |url=https://www.paudal.com/2022/08/18/the-light-of-the-world-naason-joaquin-is-changed-from-jail-for-this-reason/|access-date=2023-06-16|archive-date=2022-08-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220826040244/https://www.paudal.com/2022/08/18/the-light-of-the-world-naason-joaquin-is-changed-from-jail-for-this-reason/}}</ref> He was to also undergo a civil trial on charges including [[human trafficking]] and [[forced labor]]; a [[RICO]] suit named him, the organization called Light of the World, his mother, his wife, his brother, and many of the leaders of the organization.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Home Page |url=https://www.today90.com/ |access-date=2022-12-27 |website=Today90 |archive-date=2022-12-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221227034530/https://www.today90.com/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Federal criminal investigations were pending in both the United States and Mexico.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Albeck-Ripka |first=Livia |date=2022-06-09 |title=Leader of Mexican Church Is Sentenced to 16 Years for Sex Crimes |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/09/us/california-mexican-church-abuse.html |access-date=2022-12-27 |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=2022-08-26 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220826040243/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/09/us/california-mexican-church-abuse.html |url-status=live }}</ref> {{As of|2023|04}}, he is held in the [[California Institution for Men]] in [[Chino, California]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=CDCR Public Inmate Locator Disclaimer |url=https://inmatelocator.cdcr.ca.gov/default.aspx |access-date=2023-04-13 |website=inmatelocator.cdcr.ca.gov |archive-date=3 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201003223909/https://inmatelocator.cdcr.ca.gov/default.aspx |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In October 2023, Joaquín Garcia was indicted by a federal grand jury on charges relating to the production and possession of child pornography.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Tran |first1=Emi Tuyetnhi |title=Head of megachurch, in prison for sex abuse, is charged with producing child pornography |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/garcia-megachurch-sex-abuse-child-pornography-charges-rcna122310 |access-date=28 October 2023 |publisher=NBC News |date=26 October 2023}}</ref>