Still, something is intriguing about the group-think characteristics of cults and how decent, innocent people can be sucked into such a destructive mindset. With that in mind, let’s dive into the 25 Most Terrifying Cults in History! Police stormed the area, freeing 14 Ngabe villagers who had been severely beaten, including several women and children. Weapons and caches of money were discovered near an improvised Church, the bodies of six children aged one to seventeen and an adult, and the sacrificed corpse of a goat. Ten people were arrested in connection with the crimes. In the same way as the Sten Tari cult, it’s hard to pinpoint where exactly this type of behavior is condoned in the Bible… Despite the controversial use of “Flower Girls” – specially chosen teenage girls who served as concubines for Tari and other cult leaders – the cult grew to around 6,000 members. Tari once claimed to have over 400 flower girls just for himself. Tari and members of his cult raped and murdered 13-year-old Rita Herman, whose mother had given her up to Tari, in October 2006. Angry villagers handed him over to the police. Tari was later found guilty of four counts of rape but never charged with murder, and he escaped prison in 2013. Before long, he murdered a five-year-old girl and attempted to murder a teenager the next day. This time the villagers decided to take care of Tari themselves. Tari was castrated and beaten to death before villagers buried him. As monogamy was considered outdated and archaic, followers were encouraged to simultaneously date multiple people within the cult’s structure. Newton and his wife also had a say in what professions children could pursue, their pastimes, and how they were raised. Sexual abuse of women and children was common. This is one possible explanation for the homicides of actress Sharon Tate, director Roman Polanski’s wife, and Rosemary and Leno LaBianca in their home. The plan was to convince people that the murders were carried out by African-Americans. Manson and his followers were charged with nine homicides. Charles Manson died while behind bars in 2017. Dederich grew increasingly hungry for power over time, charging his followers unrealistic high fees and forcing them to perform physical labor. In addition, Dederich created a “hit list” of those who attempted to shut down his community, including the lawyer Paul Morantz. Synanon was eventually closed down in 1991 due to evidence destruction, tax evasion, and terrorism. A series of legal battles over the ashram’s construction ensued, culminating in a mass food poisoning attack (the first known bioterrorism attack in American history) and an assassination attempt. Rajneesh was deported as a result of the incident. He returned to India and recovered and managed the Pune ashram until he died in 1990. They lured four younger youths to the woods on the city’s outskirts. When they arrived, they forced them to consume alcohol before viciously assaulting them. According to early reports, each victim suffered 666 stab wounds. Moreover, the cult cannibalized body parts before throwing them into a pit marked with Satanic symbols. Only six of the cult members were charged with murder after the bodies were located about two months later. He also claimed that he could interpret and predict their futures by looking at people’s feet. The cult, which eventually became known as the “Foot Reading Cult,” had nearly 30,000 members followers at its peak, and around $1 billion was stolen from its following. The leader would ultimately receive a 12-year prison sentence for fraud. Members believed that the world was ending and that everyone who wasn’t a member was going to Hell unless they were killed by the cult. Asahara planned the sarin gas attack in an attempt to save the doomed. The group still exists under the name Aleph. Expensive life insurance policies were taken out on people in Castro’s circle and cashed in by followers when a member of the improvised family “accidentally” died. Perez was ultimately convicted of 28 felonies and sentenced to 80 years in prison in February 2015. LeBaron believed himself to be God’s messenger and made up the rules as he went along regarding women and monogamy. LeBaron amassed hundreds of followers over his two-decade reign and had 51 children with 13 wives. His followers allegedly murdered more than 20 people on LeBaron’s orders. Although he died in prison, his reign of terror lasted for several more years as he left a hit list behind for his loyal subjects. Korda and her followers believed overpopulation was to blame for the world’s problems, such as climate change, water scarcity, and species extinction. They also thought population reduction was the only way to solve the world’s problems. The cult was at its busiest in the early 1990s. “Save the Planet, Kill Yourself,” is their most famous slogan. Women were required to follow near-starvation diets and hand over “collateral” – humiliating and potentially embarrassing documentation, such as nude photos – that would be made public if they revealed the existence of D.O.S. Allison Mack, well-known for her role in the TV show “Smallville,” became a co-conspirator who recruited women into the organization and even resorted to blackmail. Mack was sentenced to three years in prison after a plea bargain and cooperating with police in their investigation of Raniere. Raniere was convicted of trafficking and conspiracy to use forced labor and ultimately sentenced to 120 years in prison. His followers believed he was the earthly messenger of Allah and vowed to throw themself in front of excavators and other heavy machinery if police attempted to demolish their settlement. The cult was discovered by accident by security forces during a random inspection of Muslim communities in the village of Torfyanoy near Kazan. Members believed this was the only way to avoid the apocalypse. They wouldn’t even speak for fear of breaking the commandment of lying. Over 1000 members of the cult would mysteriously die in a fire, the cause of which is unclear. Some witnesses claim they committed suicide because they expected the Virgin Mary to appear that day. A loving man, he was said to have 80 wives and 50 children by the time he got arrested. According to recent cult member interviews, Jeffs had control over the lives of nearly all 15,000 members. The children in the group did not attend school or socialize with anybody from the “outside world.” When the cult’s ranch was raided in 2008, over 400 children were discovered. However, some eventually left the cave as melting snow had caused a partial collapse of the cave’s roof. Followers believed that they would get to decide who went to heaven or hell after death. Eventually, other followers were forced to leave because of the stench from the bodies of followers that passed away during the winter. He claimed to have magical abilities that rendered people not only bulletproof but also invisible. With these supposed magical capabilities, he had no problems recruiting followers to perform. He enlisted the help of others to carry out the ritual murders. Several rites, including mutilations, are believed to have been organized by him to protect their drug-smuggling business. It was expected of all female members to seduce and recruit non-member men. The organization’s most contentious practice was the sexual abuse of children. Members believed in “free love,” which Berg defined as sex that could not be confined within relationships or specific ages. Luc Jouret and Joseph Di Mambro, the cult’s founders, were accused of forcing their followers to provide them with cash and convincing them that they had to die burning if they wanted to secure their place in Heaven. The obscure cult hit the headlines when its members were discovered burned to death in France, Switzerland, and Canada. Despite the bad publicity, the cult exists to this day. The end came when the FBI procured a search warrant for the compound because the agency suspected the cult was selling weapons. As a result, a nearly two-month standoff ensued, ending in the compound being stormed by federal agents. The events’ accounts are somewhat disputed, but about 80 people were killed, including Koresh and 25 children, due to gunshots or fires. Other adults in the group were referred to as “aunties” or “uncles,” but Hamilton-Byrne contended to be the birth mother of all 28 children. She also pretended to be Jesus Christ; if the kids didn’t live up to her stringent standards, they were assaulted, deprived of food, or given LSD. The cult went undetected for years because the children were required to hide anytime visitors arrived, but in 1987, the group’s headquarters was raided, and all the children were removed. To achieve this goal, she rounded up several boys between the ages of six and fourteen and intended to “eradicate” them. The boys would then be tortured, raped, and stabbed to death. The horrors wouldn’t end with death. After dying, their bodies would be brutalized, genitals and vital organs removed. Members of the group were suspected of murdering 19 boys, but after an initial arrest, De Andrade escaped by fleeing the country. The intent behind the suicides was to locate an alien spacecraft trailing the oncoming Hale-Bopp comet. The cult thought that their human bodies were holding them back by keeping them on Earth and that by rejecting their Earthly containers, they would be able to progress to the “Next Level. Jones ordered his followers to drink poison the night after cult members murdered US Congressman Leo Ryan, who had come to investigate conditions at the camp. Many were forced to do so at gunpoint. On November 18, 1978, over 900 people died from the poisonings, one-third of whom were young children under 17.
