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  Fox5 Exclusive: Woman Says She's Victim of "Prophet"

Fox 5
July 8, 2009

http://www.fox5vegas.com/news/19987095/detail.html

[with video]

Video: Church Member Talks 'Exorcism'

LAS VEGAS -- Only on FOX5, a woman has come forward and said she had a close encounter with the man who called himself a prophet.

Benito Catello, 75, faces 29 counts of sexual assault and lewdness. One woman said her experience with Catello changed her life forever.

The woman did not want to give away her identity. She said she began getting wrapped into Catello's church, The Ministry, and her life has not been the same since.

"He told me I was special," she said.

The woman, who is now 24 years old, said she met Catello in the summer of 2002. A friend invited her to a meeting at his home, and she said she was a Christian and wanted to check it out.

“You wouldn’t even see it as manipulation back then," the woman said.

She said she felt accepted, and it made her faith stronger. But then things changed.

“He said I needed to have demons taken out of me," the woman said.

The woman said Catello took her into a back room for some sort of exorcism. She said he told her to lie down on the bed, and she closed her eyes.

“I heard him unzip his pants or something," the woman said.

She said she felt warped into Catello's world and became enamored by him, but her parents became suspicious.

“My dad would not let me go back there," she said. “He said, ‘Your mom is scared. What is going on with you? What is wrong?’ He wouldn’t let me call him. I guess ‘papa’ had called me."

Catello's followers called him “papa,” and he called them his “sheep.”

Soon after, all ties were cut with the self-proclaimed “prophet.”

“I would have gone that far, would have easily listened to everything he said, been the best follower," the woman said.

She said life after that summer has not been easy.

“I still struggle with it -- got diagnosed with bipolar, lost a lot of weight, and I struggle with psychosis sometimes -- in and out of touch with reality," the woman said.

The woman said she finally came forward because she realized there could be more victims out there, and she wanted to encourage them to speak up.

“Come forward. Tell people what happened. Don't be afraid," she said.

The woman said she plans to go to police with her story. She said she now she has a family of her own and is ready to move on.

If you know anyone who may be a victim in this case, have them call Crime Stoppers at 702-385-5555.

 
 

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