TMM 🇺🇸

This is INSANE: an immigrant pastor who claimed to be an MS-13 GANG MEMBER turned his Oklahoma church into a forced-labor operation, threatened families who tried to escape, and s*xually abu$ed children as young as 15. Now he's been sentenced to 30 years in prison. Elmer Baca Flores, 41, operated Ministerio Levantando Adoradores Para Cristo out of his home in the Oklahoma City area, where he exploited his position as a religious leader to control members of his congregation. The investigation began after two fathers contacted police in January 2025, reporting that their wives had taken their children to live with Flores and stopped communicating with them. When officers investigated, they discovered multiple families with children and single women living inside the pastor's residence. Investigators learned that Flores had pressured families to abandon their jobs, leave their homes, and cut ties with relatives before moving into the property, which doubled as his church. Once there, victims were required to perform unpaid labor under his control. Flores used their religious beliefs to demand obedience and threatened physical violence if they attempted to leave, claiming he belonged to the notorious MS-13 gang. But the allegations went far beyond forced labor. According to court documents, Flores regularly conducted classes for women and children and subjected members to disturbing “tests” supposedly designed to measure their loyalty and resistance to temptation. One teenage girl reported that Flores began s*xually abu$ing her when she was just 15 years old. Investigators said Flores convinced members of the congregation that the girl was the “chosen one,” claiming God could communicate through her and that she was supposed to sleep in his room. Court records describe allegations that Flores as$aulted the girl on two occasions and made another s*xual proposition to her. The teenager eventually told her parents about the abu$e in January 2025, helping expose what was happening inside the congregation. In March 2025, the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics Human Trafficking Unit began investigating reports that Flores was trafficking members of his church. Oklahoma City police arrested him the following month on three counts of lewd acts with a child. As investigators uncovered additional evidence, prosecutors expanded the case in October 2025 to include forced-labor trafficking and s*xual battery charges. Additional trafficking charges involving eight adults followed in January 2026. On November 3, an Oklahoma County jury convicted Flores on 17 criminal counts, including 13 counts of human trafficking for forced labor, one count of lewd acts with a child under 16, two counts of lewd or indecent proposals to a child, and one count of s*xual battery. He received a 30-year prison sentence, must register as a s*x offender, and faces deportation. The Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics says the case represents the first conviction for human trafficking involving forced labor in the state's history. OBN Director Donnie Anderson praised the victims for coming forward and helping authorities bring Flores to justice. What began with families reporting that their loved ones had disappeared into a pastor's home ultimately exposed a trafficking operation involving adults and children who had trusted him with their spiritual well-being. Is 30 years enough for someone convicted of exploiting entire families and committing s*x crimes against children? #Oklahoma #HumanTrafficking #ChildProtection