New Mexico Cult Leader Arrested On Sex Charges

Clayton, NM (AHN) - A leader of a New Mexico doomsday cult was arrested early Tuesday on sex charges involving minors.

In an ABC News report, Clayton Police Department Chief Scott Julian confirmed that Wayne Bent, the self-proclaimed Messiah of the Lord Our Righteousness Church, had been charged with three counts of sexual contact with a minor as well as three counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

Bent, 66, is known to his followers as Michael Travesser. He was arrested inside the group's property, a former ranch called Strong City, and is currently held at the Clayton-Union County Consolidated Detention Facility.

On April 22, New Mexico child welfare workers removed three teens from Strong City after getting reports they were sexually abused.

The group planned to stage a mass suicide in 2002, prompting an FBI-led raid.