[ad_1]
The state of Missouri has launched a criminal investigation into allegations of abuse and neglect at Agape Residential School, which were reported by NBC News earlier this month, a spokesperson for the Highway Patrol confirmed on Friday. of State.
Agape, a Christian boarding school in rural southwestern Missouri, advertises itself as an institution that “turns into rebellious boys.” More than a dozen alumni and former staff previously told NBC News that Agape employees frequently assault the boys in their care and that the school censors students’ communication with their parents. .
The Missouri State Highway Patrol said on Friday that its Anti-Crime and Drugs Division is investigating Agape “at the request of the Cedar County Sheriff and the Children’s Division of the Department of Human Services of the Missouri.”
A spokesperson for the Highway Patrol declined to say what triggered the criminal investigation or when it was launched. The development comes two weeks after NBC News and “Dateline” published an investigation into allegations of abuse at Agape. The Kansas City Star has published similar articles in recent months.
The Missouri Department of Social Services declined to comment on the Agapé investigation, citing privacy rules regarding child abuse investigations, but said such investigations “are often co-investigated with local law enforcement. “. Cedar County Sheriff James McCrary did not immediately respond to a request for comment, nor did Agape.
Agape executives have yet to respond to requests for comment on the abuse allegations. On its website, the school claims to have welcomed more than 4,000 students aged 12 to 17 over the past three decades. Agape also says that the boys “will find any excuse to explain to their parents why they should not stay here”, and that if the school was closed, the students would end up in jail.
Missouri is one of 17 states that exempts religious boarding schools from licensing and oversight by public child welfare and education authorities, according to an NBC News investigation. At least 23 states, including Missouri, don’t even require religious boarding schools to tell their state education department they exist.
After hearing testimony from former residential school students, including Agape, earlier this month, a Missouri house committee advanced bipartisan legislation requiring those schools to register with the state. The legislation would also give the Department of Social Services the power to seek to close facilities following suspected cases of abuse.
[ad_2]
Source link