Cult leader Victor Barnard arrested at Brazilian beach house

"We were called the ‘10 Maidens' and we were supposed to be the picture of virginity and chastity. We had taken a vow of celibacy basically. And that's what the church knew, but that was a lie from day one," Schweiss said.  

The woman told Fox 9 how they were part of a group of young first born girls known as the Maidens, who assisted with chores at the compound and were instructed to have sexual relations with Barnard. As adults, the woman brought their concerns to the Pine County Sheriff's Office, but former Pine County attorney John Carlson declined to charge the case. Barnard had since moved with many of his followers to Washington. 

All that changed after the Schweiss and Tornambe came forward to tell their story. Soon the Pine County Sheriff's Office reopened the case and Carlson charged Barnard with 59 counts of sexual abuse of minors. The former sheriff says he always suspected Barnard had left the country.

"He had the financial support and a group of supports willing to keep his location confidential. If you have that kind of support, it's not hard to disappear," he told Fox 9 over the phone.

Current Pine County attorney Reese Fredrickson is now tasked with the prosecution.

"We're confident that we can do this case. We're confident that we can meet our obligations of making sure the process is fair if it goes to trial," he said.

Barnard's parents were home in Becker on Sunday, and both declined to speak on camera but said they were crushed by the news, claiming to be completely unaware of their son's cult or alleged criminal sexual conduct.

'OMG, that's him'

Schweiss, when shown a picture of Barnard in handcuff's this morning, said in a text, "OMG, that's him!"

Tornambe told Fox 9 she felt numb and started crying when she heard the news of his arrest.

"He had talked about if things got bad in the U.S., he might have to go to Brazil. I'm not surprised they found him down there," she said.