Nuwaubian cult leader Malachi York either a vicious manipulator who coerced children into having sex with him or was the victim of a witchhunt by federal officials afraid of his teachings, attorneys said Tuesday in the opening statements of Yorks trial.
The leader of the mostly black United Nuwaubian Nation of Moors faces 13 federal counts of child molestation and racketeering.
Prosecutors started their case against York by telling jurors that he abused his power as a leader of a cult to force boys and girls to have sex with him at his neo-Egyptian compound in rural central Georgia.
Federal prosecutor Stephanie Thacker said the children _ who were between ages 5 and 15 _ were rewarded with gold bracelets, diamonds, candy, and trips to restaurants outside the compound for having sex with him.
The children were under Yorks complete control, Thacker said. She claimed York set himself up as a messiah figure who demanded the loyalty of his followers.
They were taught that he was the supreme authority ... he was a god, she said. The man who they thought was a father, a god, violated them sexually when they were very young.
Yorks attorney, Adrian Patrick, also said the case was about power _ not about York lording it over his followers, but the government oppressing a peaceful religious group
He compared Yorks prosecution to Germanys oppression of the Jews and the British rule of colonial America.
The government is going to attempt to make you believe the defendant is guilty because hes different, Patrick said. This is a sexy case. Its about sex and money. We are depending on you to see beyond the fantasy and the sensationalism of this case.
Patrick also said that if the abuse had occurred, more than the dozen or so alleged victims would have gone to the authorities, especially when the Nuwaubian compound was home to hundreds.
He said there is no physical evidence of abuse.
If all of this sex was going on with all these alleged victims, there should be physical evidence to support that, Patrick said.
The case will be decided by a jury of five men and 11 women. Four of the jurors are alternates, but court officials wouldnt identify the jury members from the alternates.
Authorities have worried that Nuwaubian supporters could disrupt the trial by intimidating jurors and handing out anti-government literature. In addition, the trial was moved 225 miles from Macon to Brunswick because of pretrial publicity
U.S. District Court Judge Ashley Royal has closed the proceedings to all but the media and those involved in the case to prevent outbursts from Yorks followers and banned protests outside the courtroom.
York, 58, aka Chief Black Thunderbird Eagle, has unsuccessfully argued he has American Indian heritage and should not be judged by the U.S. court system. Prosecutors have said they plan to make a case that York used his status as a religious leader for sex and money, enriching himself, marrying several women and abusing young girls who were part of his sect.
York has maintained hes being unfairly prosecuted because of a vendetta by small-town authorities who dislike the mostly black members of his cult for their unusual practices and a compound that includes pyramid-like structures complete with hieroglyphics.
Hundreds of Yorks supporters have demonstrated at his previous hearings, dressed in American Indian garb and beating drums. However, only about a dozen supporters arrived at court Tuesday, where they were able to watch the proceedings on a television feed into another room in the courthouse.
While police put on a show of strength around the courthouse during jury selection Monday, with armed officers patrolling the rooftops and the surroundings of the courthouse, by Tuesday they had scaled back their efforts.
The trial is expected to last three weeks.