Tony Alamo arrested yet again
FBI spokesman Steve Frazier in Little Rock said Alamo was staying in Flagstaff, Ariz., when arrested. The evangelist — who began his career as a California street preacher in 1966 — was scheduled for a federal court appearance tomorrow in Flagstaff.
"He has to have an initial apperance before I can say a whole lot," Frazier said. He said he did not believe children were with Alamo at the time of the arrest.
Agents arrested Alamo — whose real name is Bernie LaZar Hoffman — on charges that he violated the Mann Act, which prohibits transporting children across state lines for illegal purposes. Frazier described the illegal purposes as "sexual activity."
"I'm not on the run," Alamo said on the phone Thursday from a desert location he would not specify. "I was on my way to Santa Clarita but I got stranded here." His comments came during "a long, light-hearted casual interview."
Federal agents and state police had raided Alamo's Arkansas compound on Saturday and removed six girls from the home. His Santa Clarita compound was raided Sunday. Prosecutors issued an arrest warrant today.
Tomorrow in Little Rock, Ark., two of six girls are expected to testify behind closed doors about allegations of sexual abuse.
It is strange that this little known evangelist (and someone who has met Jack Chick) has been the target of such huge media attention. The Southern Poverty Law Center, a notorious liberal organization, has harassed Alamo for being "anti-Catholic" and "anti-homosexual." That being the case, every Independent Baptist pastor should be arrested and their churches shut down also.
See Chick's "Kiss the Protestants Goodbye" and "Alberto"