Evangelist Denies He Directed Beating of Boy at Commune in Saugus

Flamboyant evangelist Tony Alamo pleaded not guilty Wednesday to charges he directed the beating of a young boy three years ago at the now-defunct commune his religious cult established in Saugus.

“I am innocent and am here to prove it,” the smiling preacher said before entering Newhall Municipal Court.

Accompanied by a phalanx of attorneys, followers and a bail bondsman from Arkansas--where he was recently acquitted of threatening a federal judge and faces other legal problems--Alamo surrendered on two felony charges.

He was released two hours later after his bail was reduced from $1 million to $250,000.

The bondsman said members of the preacher’s entourage paid him $25,000 in cash to put up the bond.

During the brief court hearing, Deputy Dist. Atty. John Asari opposed the bail reduction because Alamo had been a fugitive for nearly two years after the charges were filed against him in 1988.

But Judge H. Keith Byram agreed with the contention of Alamo’s attorney, Danny Davis, that $1-million bail was “outrageous” for charges that usually warrant only a $20,000 bond.

Byram scheduled a preliminary hearing for Dec. 12.

Alamo, 56, is charged with directing followers to beat an 11-year-old boy.

Authorities said the boy was struck with a wooden paddle more than 100 times as a disciplinary measure at the Saugus commune operated by the Holy Alamo Christian Church.

After charges were filed, Alamo fled and was considered a fugitive until he was arrested in July in Tampa, Fla.

Federal marshals said he had apparently been living for months under aliases, establishing small businesses with his followers and preparing taped sermons to be broadcast on religious radio stations.

Alamo has said he left California not knowing he was wanted in connection with the charges.

“I’ve been out preaching the Gospel,” he said Wednesday when asked by reporters where he was while authorities hunted him.

Following his arrest, Alamo was moved by authorities to Arkansas, where he was tried and acquitted on charges that he had threatened the life of a federal judge who had awarded $1.4 million to former followers who had sued Alamo.

Alamo’s legal entanglements in Arkansas also include unresolved judgments and liens against his church’s holdings by the IRS and the U.S. Department of Labor.

He was required to post $450,000 bail in those cases to secure federal approval to travel to California to face the charges here.

The bond imposed by Byram brought to $700,000 the amount of bail Alamo has had to put up in the last 30 days.

Bob Cole, a Fort Smith, Ark., bondsman who is not a member of Alamo’s church but has put together security for each of the bonds, called Alamo a no-risk client. He says he has known Alamo for six years and expects him to appear for hearings.

Cole said Alamo’s followers have paid him $70,000--the standard 10% non-refundable charge--for securing the bonds.

He opened his briefcase and displayed a thick envelope that he said contained $25,000 in cash he was paid for arranging Alamo’s bail Wednesday.

Cole said he was told that the money came from Alamo’s followers.

Jeffrey Dickstein, an attorney representing Alamo in Arkansas, said followers have created a defense fund that has paid for attorneys and bail for the preacher.

“Certainly, people that tithe to the church, some of that money is being used,” he said.

But Dickstein said Alamo is also negotiating with IRS and labor officials to be allowed to start businesses again so he can be self-sufficient.

Those businesses are expected to include a revival of the company that sold denim jackets designed by Alamo.

Such a firm, operated by his followers in the 1980s, brought in millions of dollars to the church.

“Tony has a tremendous capacity to come up with marketable enterprises,” Dickstein said. “I am sure the jackets could be one again.”

After his release, Alamo said he felt “wonderful” but declined to answer questions about the status of his church.

He then jumped into the passenger seat of the dented brown van in which he had come from Arkansas and was driven away.