CANADA
Our Windsor
By Allan Woods
MONTREAL — Quebec City police say they are investigating allegations of abuse involving a religious leader accused of keeping at least seven young boys confined in his basement — in one case for 13 years.
At least three of the alleged victims testified they were handed over to the Baptist pastor by their parents at a young age and forced to live in the basement of the home he shared with his wife and children, according to court documents.
The boys, who were ages 5, 8 and 10 when their alleged ordeals began, were home-schooled by the pastor and taught a rigid interpretation of the Bible, according to the boys’ testimony summarized in Quebec family court judgments that ordered two boys into foster care earlier this year.
When the pastor’s orders were disobeyed, the boys testified they suffered cruel and severe punishments such as slaps and punches, the withholding of food and water or being subjected to extreme physical exercise, according to the court judgments.
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