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Texas couple indicted in ritual child-abuse
A Texas couple who allegedly molested their own children for more than a decade under the guise of religious ceremony were indicted Thursday by a federal grand jury in Sacramento.
The indictment charges Michael Labrecque, 44, with three counts of transporting minors across state lines for unlawful sexual conduct. His wife, Juliette, 45, faces a single count. Each charge carries a maximum 15 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
At the same time, FBI Special Agent Jeffrey Rinek filed a three-count criminal complaint against their alleged cult leader, Allen Harrod, a self-proclaimed religious prophet from Folsom whose scriptural interpretations allegedly provided the basis for frequent rituals of sexual abuse.
It charges Harrod with three counts of transporting minors for unlawful sexual conduct. Such a complaint is generally a precursor to a grand jury indictment.
Rinek also filed a criminal complaint Thursday against Harrod’s wife, Irene, charging her with two counts of transporting minors for unlawful sexual conduct.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Laurel White, who has handled most of her office’s recent child pornography cases, is prosecuting the Labrecques.
Federal Defender Quin Denvir and defense attorney Jan David Karowsky indicated Thursday they may be involved in the Labrecque case, but said it is premature to comment on the indictments.
Attorneys representing the Harrods in a Sacramento Superior Court case scheduled for trial next week have maintained their clients’ innocence.
“He’s not guilty,” Harrod’s attorney, Dani Williams, said last week. Williams was on vacation Thursday and could not be reached.
Irene Harrod’s attorney, Dean Johannson, has said his client was as much a victim of Harrod as the children. He said Allen Harrod beat Irene and forced her to participate in rituals of sexual abuse and that she obeyed because she believed he was her religious leader. Johannson also was on vacation Thursday and could not be reached.
Allen Harrod’s many writings and scriptural interpretations appear to derive from fundamental Mormon beliefs, but he incorporated age-and gender-specific rituals of sexual abuse in his teachings, according to court documents.
Among the evidence seized by Folsom police were journals kept by girls and women that appear to document sexual offerings in compliance with Harrod’s dictates, according to one source familiar with the investigation.
The federal case, unusual in its scope and nature, began two years ago with the arrests of the Harrods. Court documents allege that Allen Harrod and Michael LaBrecque had been swapping their children and spouses for sex. Court documents also allege that the women also molested their own and each other’s children.
Sources said the Harrods’ state court case could be delayed because psychiatric examinations of Allen Harrod’s fitness to stand trial may not be completed by next week.
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