Six members of the Word of Life Christian Church in New Hartford, New York have been arrested following the death of 19-year-old member Lucas Leonard, who reportedly suffered blunt-force trauma injuries to the torso and extremities. Both the duration of the assault and the severity of the injuries contributed to the fatality, according to CNN. Leonard’s parents, Bruce T. Leonard and Deborah R. Leonard, have both been charged with first-degree manslaughter.
In the wake of this severely unsettling death, local residents have described the church to various media outlets as a "cult" where members are only seen "at night, sometimes at 3 a.m." and regularly engage in "chants." Male members of the church wear what is described as "long black trenchcoats" while other members wear "normal clothing," according to residents quoted by the Syracuse Post-Standard.
More arrests stemming from the death of Lucas Leonard are expected to be made, local authorities confirm. Lucas was reportedly involved in a "counseling session" that involved "hours of physical punishment," a session which also included his seriously injured brother. After obtaining a search warrant, local authorities achieved "tactical entry" into the church building before discovering the wounded brother and "several other children," police officials told the Utica Observer-Dispatch. Those children were promptly turned over to child protective services, though their relation to the deceased was not made immediately available.