May 31, 2005
FBI Evidence Team Finishes Search At Occult Church
PONCHATOULA -- Investigators interviewed witnesses and went through volumes of evidence Thursday as they worked to piece together a Ponchatoula church's alleged occult rituals that included devil-worship and sex with children and animals. A FBI evidence team wrapped up its search at the Hosanna Church on Southwest Railroad Avenue, the location where most of the alleged child abuse occurred, said Laura Covington, spokeswoman for the Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff's Office. Parish Sheriff Daniel Edwards has said that there are at least 100 people detectives plan to interview and has not ruled out more arrests.
Former Pastor, Congregants Face
Child-Sex and Satanic Accusations
PONCHATOULA, LA. -- Two decades ago, Hosanna Church was one of the fastest growing congregations in the cypress flats of Tangipahoa Parish on Lake Pontchartrain's northwest rim and its pastor, Louis Lamonica, was a beloved figure. And now, many of them, including the former pastor and a deputy sheriff who once lived on the church grounds, are behind bars, accused by the police of a litany of ungodly offenses, including sexual abuse of perhaps two dozen children and the mutilations of cats for satanic rituals.