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Family members of an American cult leader, reportedly found mummified in a Colorado home, are questioning how she ended up dead.
A body believed to be that of Amy Carlson, 45, who was referred to as the Love Has Won cults Mother God, was found cocooned in a sleeping bag and wrapped in Christmas lights in April.
Officials were yet to confirm the identity of the body, but Carlsons family is almost certain it was her. The coroner would be using dental records for identification as the state of decomposition meant fingerprints could not be recovered.
Chelsea Renninger, Carlsons sister, told the BBC, they knew she was not completely innocent because she chose to join the cult, but she didnt deserve what happened to her.
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No human being deserves that.
The BBC reported the group shared an update on its now-deleted Facebook page at the weekend confirming its leader had ascended.
The body was found in what police described as some kind of shrine, with glitter makeup around the eyesockets. The eyes were missing and the teeth were showing through the lips, according to one suspected member of the group.
The circumstances of the death were still under investigation, but there was no immediate evidence of foul play, the BBC reported. Its believed the woman may have died in March and was later driven from California to Colorado.
Seven suspected members of the group, aged between 30 and 52, were taken into custody. They face a number of charges including tampering with human remains, abuse of a corpse, child abuse, and false imprisonment.
“I’ve never seen a group of people be so nonchalant about a dead person in their backroom, Saguache County’s Corporal Steven Hansen told media.
All had been staying at the home of another suspected member, Miguel Lamboy, when the body was found. Lamboy, who has not been charged, invited five people into his home after they turned up and said they needed somewhere to stay.
Amy Carlson is believed to be the body discovered mummified in a home in Colorado in April.
A few days later, on April 28, after leaving his property located southeast of Colorado Springs, he discovered the body. Lamboy tried to leave the house with his 2-year-old son, but the group stopped the child from leaving. He then went to the police station and reported the body, TheWashington Post reported.
A 13-year-old girl, the daughter of one of the people at the house, was also at the property and taken into custody.
I am God
The religious group looked to Carlson as their spiritual leader. According to The Washington Post, she claimed to be a divinity who had lived 534 lives, including as Jesus Christ, Joan of Arc, and Marilyn Monroe.
She also claimed she could cure cancer, could speak with the spirit of the late actor Robin Williams, and was the daughter of former US President Donald Trump in another life.
The group, which consisted of 20 full-time members, was described as a paradigm for bringing peace on Earth. Former members openly labelled it a cult.
Carlson left her three children permanently over a decade ago. Most of her family hadnt seen her since, but some kept in touch and tried, on numerous occasions, to get her help.
The family sought the help of Dr Phil in September last year. In clips shared during the segment, Carlson explained how she was called on a mission in 2006 and just surrendered and embraced.
My angels told me that I had to go serve humanity and that I had to give up everything. I did that.
I am God … mother Earth … Spiderwoman.
Her mother, Linda Haythorne, believed her daughter was brainwashed before becoming the leader of the group.
She was a victim in the beginning, she said, according to The Washington Post. And then it just developed over time.
The Saguache County Sheriffs office reportedly received many complaints from families within the US claiming the group was brainwashing people and stealing their money.
A documentary from Vice, released in March, painted a picture of the group, and how it made money through live streams and selling merchandise.
Members were reportedly deprived of sleep, underfed, and not paid.
