FBI raids Georgia churches near military bases; sources say church was targeting soldiers
The FBI on Thursday raided three churches associated with the House of Prayer Christian Church in Georgia and Texas.
The FBI has not released a statement regarding the raids.
The House of Prayer is owned by the foreign nonprofit company House of Prayer Christian Churches of America Inc., which registered with the Georgia Secretary of State in 2004. The business's listed officers are affiliated with the Georgia churches and use Hinesville, Georgia, post office boxes as mailing addresses.
Its churches, which are primarily located near military bases throughout the country, have been accused by former members and a veterans' advocacy group of operating like a cult and targeting soldiers.
In August 2020, Veterans Education Success, an advocacy organization based in Washington D.C., asked the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the Georgia Veterans Service to investigate alleged abuses of the GI Bill program by House of Prayer Christian Church’s bible seminaries.
Veterans alleged the House of Prayer Christian Church "deceives the VA during inspections and targets veterans in order to access GI Bill funding, VA disability compensation, and VA home loans," according to the organization's letter to the VA and Georgia SAA.
Half a dozen FBI agents were seen in the back of the Assembly of Prayer church on Tobacco Road in Hephzibah during a raid that started at about 7:15 a.m. Thursday and continued into the afternoon.
According to a search of property records, House of Prayer Christian Churches owns 2952 Old Tobacco Road, the address of the Assembly of Prayer church in Richmond County.
At about 1 p.m., agents were seen using stairs at the back of the building during the investigation, according to Sgt. William McCarty with the Richmond County Sheriff's Office.
"We were there to assist them, but referring everything over to the FBI," said McCarty. He said he could not confirm if there were any arrests.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/fbi-raids-georgia-churches-near-004614130.html