Bolivian kidnapper is religious sect member

The Bolivian kidnapper who took a 10-year-old girl from Hospitalet de Llobregat, in Barcelona, did so because he needed to marry a 10-year-old virgin in order to rise up the ranks in his sect.

The Guardia Civil who accompanied the girl on her return to Spain, Jose Miguel Hidalgo, explains that The Evangelic Association of the Israelite Mission of New Universal Pact (EAIMNUP) is a Bolivian religious sect which is very popular in the jungle region of Chapare, where the girl was found.

Hidalgo also explained that in order to be a leader in these ‘destructive’ sects, it was necessary to marry a virgin no older than 10 years old.

Jordi Domenech, Missing Persons Department, head of the Mossos d’Esquadra commented that the girl had been through hell with her kidnapper, who even made her work with cocaine as well as making and selling fruit juices locally.

He added that, when pressure from police who were closing in became too great, the kidnapper would make the girl walk several days into the jungle to reach more remote villages in which to hide.