An American missionary together with his family, and 11 other Christian leaders are facing serious charges from Nicaraguan officials who accused them of money laundering and organized crime, after hosting a massive revival with attendance of over 1,000,000 people in total.
In an interview with CBN News, Pastor Britt Hancock, founder of Mountain Gateway Order, Inc., denied these charges and said he believes the legal battle is a direct response to the scores of Nicaraguans who attended his organization’s powerful evangelistic events that held last year.
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“In 2023, Mountain Gateway helped to organize a series of mass evangelism campaigns — eight of them throughout the year,” he said. “We began in February and had the last one in November. But 1,000,000 people in total came to those eight meetings.”
Hancock said arrests began a month after the final meeting, with the national leader, coordinators of the events, and main pastors all being detained by mid-December.
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ADF International attorney Kristina Hjelkrem, who is representing Mountain Gateway, told CBN News the imprisoned leaders are accused of aggravated money laundering.
“The government has no proof whatsoever to that extent,” she said. “Mountain Gateway has tried several times to prove their innocence and to provide evidence to this point to the court, but the government has either ceased or prohibited this evidence to reach the court file.”
The potential prison sentences are sweeping, with Hjelkrem noting they range from 12 to 15 years and up to $80,000,000 per person — a fine she said is not common in the Nicaraguan judicial system.
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Mountain Gateway has denied and rebuked the allegations, saying it “diligently followed all legal requirements in the U.S. and Nicaragua that apply to nonprofit and faith-based organizations.”
