Federal prosecutors say a married New Jersey couple used religion, fear, and coercion to exploit vulnerable people for years through a church they operated out of an apartment building in Orange, New Jersey.
Treva Edwards, 61, and his wife Christine Edwards, 64, are accused of founding and running a church called “Jesus is Lord by the Holy Ghost,” where authorities allege congregants were manipulated into unpaid labor, isolated from the outside world, and subjected to abuse under the guise of religious obedience.
According to a superseding federal indictment announced this week, Treva Edwards now faces:
- Two counts of sex trafficking by force, fraud, or coercion
- Three counts of forced labor
- Conspiracy to commit forced labor
Christine Edwards has been charged with conspiracy to commit forced labor.
Federal prosecutors allege the couple specifically targeted people struggling financially or emotionally, convincing them to move into the church building and surrender control of their lives to the ministry. Once inside, victims were allegedly told Treva Edwards was a prophet who communicated directly with God — and that disobeying him would bring spiritual punishment, homelessness, emotional suffering, or financial ruin.
The indictment paints a disturbing picture of daily life inside the organization.
Authorities say church members were forced to perform grueling labor jobs throughout the Orange area, including:
- Cleaning and gutting buildings
- Moving furniture
- Shoveling snow
- Removing trash
- Cleaning raw sewage
- Exterminating rodent infestations
Prosecutors say the Edwardses kept the money earned from the labor while victims received no pay.
Investigators further allege members were:
- Fed only once a day
- Frequently deprived of sleep
- Closely monitored
- Prevented from speaking with outsiders
- Told non-members were “evil” or possessed by the devil
The couple allegedly enforced rigid schedules controlling when victims could eat, pray, work, sleep, or leave the building.
The most serious allegations center on Treva Edwards himself.
Federal prosecutors accuse him of repeatedly sexually assaulting at least two victims. One victim was allegedly impregnated and then instructed to obtain an abortion. Another was reportedly told that having sex with Edwards was “God’s will” and necessary to prevent mental illness.
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U.S. Attorney Robert Frazer said Edwards allegedly “exploited faith, fear, and coercion to control vulnerable victims for his own benefit.” Homeland Security Investigations described the church as turning “a source of hope into a tool of fear.”
The case also raises broader concerns about how authoritarian religious environments can be weaponized against vulnerable people. While the overwhelming majority of religious communities are not abusive, experts on coercive control have long warned that isolation, fear-based obedience, sleep deprivation, and claims of divine authority are common tactics in cult-like systems designed to dominate followers psychologically and financially.
Treva Edwards faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison if convicted on the sex trafficking charges, with the possibility of life imprisonment.
Federal officials are asking anyone with information related to the organization or potential additional victims to contact Homeland Security Investigations. The defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
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