INTERPOL has arrested Yoel Alter, 35, an Israeli national and senior member of the Lev Tahor cult in Guatemala. Alter was wanted in Mexico for suspected pedophilia and child trafficking and is expected to be extradited to Mexico this week.
The fundamentalist Jewish sect has been accused of involvement in mass child trafficking. On December 20, 2024, Guatemalan authorities rescued 160 children and adolescents from the cult in southeast Guatemala following allegations of child abuse, including rape, Reuters reported.
Alter was arrested outside a government center for the treatment of minors in Guatemala City, dressed in the cult’s signature brown cloak.
The Israeli national is the second member of the cult to be arrested in January, following the arrest of Jonathan Emmanuel Cardona Castillo in Guatemala, a fellow senior cult member who had been evading authorities after being charged with child abuse.
The cult consists of about 200-300 members who have been involved in multiple alleged child trafficking and abuse cases since they arrived in Guatemala in 2013.
Lev Tahor follows an extreme and highly controversial interpretation of Jewish law. Among the group’s unusual practices are lengthy prayer sessions, arranged marriages between teenagers, and head-to-toe black coverings for girls and women beginning at the age of three.