Girl 'married' at 8 says Alamo found her 'cute'
Section: News
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Her testimony came after another former underage bride of Alamo said she "married" the pastor at 14 through hurried whispers during visiting hours at a federal prison. That woman later noted inside a Bible the date Alamo first forced her to have sex, but left the name blank out of fear Alamo would beat her.
Alamo, 74, is named in a 10-count indictment alleging he took young girls across state lines for sex. His lawyers said the girls were moved so they could do legitimate work for the ministry, and claim the government has targeted him. He has pleaded not guilty and could spend the rest of his life in prison if convicted.
Defense lawyers largely left the sex and underage marriage claims unchallenged, though they questioned witnesses' memories and whether they had been coached by authorities. Several jurors appeared affected by the testimony, wiping at their red eyes. One man slowly shook his head "no" during particularly graphic testimony.
The 8-year-old bride, now 18, said Alamo groped her after their wedding and began having sex with her when she was a 9-year-old third-grader.
He also took explicit photographs of her that year with an instant camera and, upon looking at them, called her a "whore." She said she didn't understand, but Alamo told her it was a good thing.
The teenage witness - who described herself as a third-generation Alamo follower - said that at one point she asked the minister why he had selected her.
"He said, 'Because you were cute,'" she said on the witness stand. "It wasn't God's will that he married me. It's just because he thought I was cute."
She described two trips to Oklahoma to her parents' home that ended when Alamo summoned her back to his Arkansas compound for sex. Those trips are mentioned in the indictment.
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