The leader of a cultish religious group partly based in Oroville, in Butte County, was recently convicted of eight counts of child molestation and three counts of rape, and he's now been sentenced to 225 years to life — though he will be eligible for "elder parole."

58-year-old Sansue Bee Vang, the leader and prophet of a Hmong religious group founded in Wisconsin called Kev Ntseeg Leej Niam Kee Tiam Vaj Lis Thum (which loosely translates to "Belief in the Mother"), was found guilty on February 9 following a jury trial in Butte County. In 2020, Vang had moved select families in the cult-like group from Wisconsin, Minnesota, North Carolina, and Fresno to establish a new temple in Oroville, at the base of Table Mountain.

In 2024, an 11-year-old girl and her mother came forward to authorities with allegations that they had both been sexually assaulted by Vang, and according to the Butte County District Attorney's Office, a subsequent investigation led to disclosures of rape from four other women.

At trial, prosecutors presented evidence that the girl had been molested by Vang on five separate occasions when she was between the ages of 8 and 10 years old. The child, herself, testified to the multiple and escalating sexual acts she was forced to perform, and she told the court that Vang threatened to beat her if she ever told anyone.

Vang also reportedly threatened an adult woman and her family after forcibly raping her and making her swear to silence.

Another woman, who was around 19-year-old at the time of the incident, testified that Vang ordered her to have intercourse with him. According to the DA's office, "He told her that, as the prophet, he could see that terrible things would happen to her family and the Hmong community if she did not comply."

Supervising Deputy District Attorney Jennifer Bennett argued at trial that not only was there no evidence to suggest the rape survivors were lying, but there was amply evidence that Vang had established his cult in order that he could "exploit the power he imagined for himself" for his own gratification, and use the group itself to force the women's silence.

The Hmong are an ethnic group with roots in southern China who migrated into Thailand, Laos, and Vietnam in the 18th and 19th centuries to escape persecution. Many Hmong families, escaping persecution under Communist rule in Laos in the 1970s, subequently emigrated to the US, settling primarily in Wisconsin, Minnesota, and California.

While many Hmong rely on shamans to connect with the spiritual world and believe in Animism, the Oroville cult arose around a single charismatic leader, Vang, who claimed divine authority on his own.

It's unclear how many people belong to the Kev Ntseeg Leej Niam Kee Tiam Vaj Lis Thum, which had followers across multiple states. But dozens of families were reportedly in residence at the 170-acre compound they established in Oroville six years ago.

As the DA's office notes, despite the lengthy sentence, Vang will be eligible for "elder parole" in 20 years, if he survives that long.

Top image: Photo via Butte County Sheriff's Office