A California man who called himself a prophet and founded his own religious group will spend the rest of his life in prison after being convicted of sexually assaulting members of his congregation.
A judge sentenced 58-year-old Sansue Bee Vang to 225 years to life in prison. A Butte County jury previously found him guilty of eight counts of child molestation and three counts of rape involving four young girls and two women. He is also now required to register as a sex offender.
Before Judge Philip Heithecker handed down the sentence, five of the six victims spoke in court. The women explained how the sexual assaults have caused lasting damage to their mental health and strained their relationships with their families.
According to Butte County District Attorney Mike Ramsey, Vang created and led a Hmong religious organization called Kev Ntseeg Leej Niam Kee Tiam Vaj Lis Thum, which loosely translates to “Belief in the Mother.” Vang started the group in Wisconsin, relocated to Fresno in 2015, and then brought selected families from several states to Oroville in 2020 to build a temple at the base of Table Mountain.
Vang wrote the group’s readings and songs, and his followers viewed him as their absolute leader. Every single victim was a member of his organization when the assaults happened.
The case finally broke open in 2024 when an 11-year-old girl and her mother went to the authorities to report the abuse. Their disclosure led to other women coming forward. During the seven-day trial in February, one child testified that Vang molested her five different times when she was between eight and ten years old. She said Vang threatened to beat her if she told anyone what he was doing.
Another victim testified that Vang forced her to have sex with him when she was around 19 or 20 years old. She told the court that Vang claimed he could see terrible things happening to her family and the wider Hmong community if she refused him. She testified that, at the time, she truly believed his teachings. Three other women said that when they were between the ages of six and twelve, they had to attend ceremonies where Vang would inappropriately touch them, comment on their bodies, and say he would marry them one day.
Vang did not take the stand during his trial. His defense attorney tried to convince the jury of ten men and two women that the victims were lying or simply mistaken about Vang’s intentions.
Supervising Deputy District Attorney Jennifer Bennett pushed back on that defense in her closing arguments. She reminded the jury that there was zero evidence to suggest the victims were lying. Instead, she argued that Vang specifically built his organization to give himself power, which he then used to exploit his followers and keep the women silent for years.
While Vang received the absolute maximum sentence allowed by law, DA Ramsey noted that California’s “elder parole” rules mean the 58-year-old will actually be eligible for a parole hearing in twenty years.
READ: Digital Trail On KIK App Leads To 15-Year Prison Sentence In Florida Child Exploitation Case
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