BishopAccountability.org
	Residents Speak out about Living near Alamo's Ministry Minister Says Government Trying to Harass Him KHBS/KHOG September 21, 2008 http://www.4029tv.com/news/17525594/detail.html FOUKE, Ark. — Talk in the small town of Fouke is largely focused on the raid of evangelist Tony Alamo's Christian Ministries headquarters. "It's overdue," said Barbara Lenaway. "The people here are just really thrilled to see something finally be done." More than 100 law enforcement agents raided Alamo's property after a two-year investigation into allegations of child abuse. "The state concerns are that children living at the facility may have been sexually and physically abused," said the FBI's Tom Browne. According to the Arkansas State Police, six children were taken from living facilities on Alamo's property. "During the short-term separation of the children from the Alamo facilities, the children will be in the care of the Arkansas Department of Human Services," said Bill Sadler of the Arkansas State Police. Sadler said the children were still being interviewed by authorities for a second day and would remain in the care of the Arkansas Department of Human Services. Terry Purvis, the mayor of Fouke, said many of the residents in his town of about 800 feel that Tony Alamo's church is too secretive. "The general consensus of this town and people who live in this community, they believe it is a cult," said Purvis. Purvis said armed security guards that are seen patrolling the Alamo property only feed into the allegations of wrongdoing. In the 1980s, Alamo had a lot to do with the Crawford County community. He owned businesses in the area and made headlines frequently. A story that many residents said they remember clearly is that when his wife, Susan, died, Alamo refused to bury her, saying that she'd soon be resurrected. As of Sunday night, authorities have not issued any arrest warrants. Alamo told reporters that he is innocent. In an interview with CNN, Alamo said the government is trying to harass him and that child porn has not been generated at the compound. He said the investigation is about the age of consent when it comes to children and sex.
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