An ABC News yearlong investigation into the 2x2 Church, a Christian sect so secretive most people have never heard of it, has uncovered allegations of widespread child sexual abuse and subsequent coverups.
During the investigation, ABC News spoke with dozens of alleged victims of child sexual abuse across more than 30 states.
As part of the ongoing investigation by law enforcement, Raymond Zwiefelhofer was convicted of 10 counts of possessing child sexual abuse material and was sentenced to 120 years in prison last month.
“In total, there were 87 files that were determined to be child sexual abuse material or sometimes known as child pornography,” Catherine Fu, a Maricopa Deputy County Attorney, told ABC News. “The 10 charged files were a combination of photos and videos, and they were all depicting children under the age of 15 engaged in either exploitive exhibition or sexual conduct.”
Zwiefelhofer, 61, maintains his innocence.
He was a tech CEO in Arizona, but he was also a member of the 2x2 Church, according to ex-members ABC News spoke to. He was an elder in the community on and off for decades.
“I'm not guilty. Again, I like to get that – make that clear,” Zwiefelhofer said during his sentencing hearing. “I would love to know how the jury found that I knowingly did this.”
ABC News reached out to Zwiefelhofer’s attorney multiple times for comment and did not hear back.
“An elder leads a group of members in their home through church services,” Cynthia Liles, a private investigator, told ABC News. “I would say there are almost always children present in the home meetings.”
MORE: Secretive Christian sect ignored sexual abuse for decades, congregants allegeNationwide, it is illegal to possess child sexual abuse material. The minimum sentencing in Arizona is 10 years for one count. Zwiefelhofer was sentenced to 12 years for each count. “The 2x2 Church has a significant problem with child sexual abuse,” Liles said. “It’s systemic.”
Liles has been looking into allegations of abuse within the insular community for years, and says she works regularly with the FBI.
“I have notified the FBI of over a thousand accounts of child sex abuse and sex assault within the 2x2 Church community,” Liles told ABC News.
What makes the 2x2 Church so unique is the way it operates. Ministers of the church, known as workers, live with members in their homes, usually for a few days at a time.
Many former members ABC spoke with say some of the church leadership knew about abuse allegations, but did not report it to the proper authorities. Instead, the leadership would often move alleged abusers to different states.
While there is no singular head of the church, ABC News did reach out to overseers – the dozen or so men in charge of the community. While ABC News did not hear back from the overseer of Arizona who oversaw Zwiefelhofer, the former and current overseers with whom ABC News did speak all denied that widespread sexual abuse has been taking place within the 2x2 community.
The FBI announced their investigation into the 2x2 Church in February, encouraging anyone who thinks that they might be a victim to come forward with information.
In a rare and exclusive interview in June, ABC News sat down with the FBI.
“Let’s say you arrest one person, two people. Is that it?” ABC News’ Kyra Phillips asked.
“The FBI focuses, in general, on bringing cases from local to global,” Gene Kowel, the Special Agent in Charge of the investigation, said. “The FBI doesn't stop at just an initial arrest. We will follow the evidence wherever it leads.”
“Raymond Zwiefelhofer is one of most likely thousands,” Liles said. “We're getting reports of child sex abuse and sex assault committed by the highest level in leadership down to the regular members.”
“Hopefully there will be more arrests and convictions coming,” Liles said.