AGAINST REPORTS, POLIC AND JUDGES The publication of an anti-Scientology article in the press, according to the prosecutor, caused the organization to seek a retraction and to begin an investigation of the writer, in order to obtain information about any criminal or communist incidents in his past.
In addition to private details of the author's life, the lawyers used Dianetics against the reporter, Jose Rodriguez Bonfil, the prosecutor Pilar Salarrullana, and the judge in the case, Jose Maria Vazquez Honrubia.
The prosecutor cites, as an example, an instance in Ontario Canada where Scientologists organizes a fake funeral for a member of a family that was considered an "enemy" of the church as a form of intimidation, "a mafioso act".
As the case continued, the prosecutor established that Scientology Spain committed crimes of illegal congregation, crimes against public safety, tax evasion and threats and bodily injury for attacks on those considered supressives.
In addition, he expressed the opinion that some of the accused committed crimes against public health for their administration of preparations in rehabilitation centers, labor crimes for the work conditions of those in the organization, staging of a fake crime and false accusations of such for a robbery where they implicated a "supressive person" and illegal detention and control of another's person, for the arrest in the Barajas airport of another member who wished to part company with the church.
In November 1988 the judge in that case ordered the arrest of 37 scientologists involved in what was dubbed "Operation Rocio" during a reunion of about 71 national and international members, plus 19 registered organizations of Scn from Madrid, Valencia, Barcelona, Alicante, Sevilla and Jerez at a Madrid Hotel.
Defense The defense charges that the prosecutor has made several errors of judgement in his findings concerning events and actions that took place, according to Europa Press. As regards illegal congregation, they asserted that the exact natural of the "illegal congregation" of the defendants has not been defined or established, that the defendants do not know each other and had no agreement among themselves, that these were coincidences.
The defense claims that belonging to Scientology consists solely of shared belief systems, and they add, that the numbers gathered by the public ministry in order to imply a crime where incorrectly obtained. They also state that no claim can be made against them for violating the freedom and security of its workers since its member do not receive social security. They denied any physical harm caused for lack of appropriate medical care to their supposed victims, the crimes against public health, but statiing that the substances administered to drug addicts were vitamins. They also denied trespassing, falsely acting as medical doctors, illegallly detaining another as in the case of the false arrest because they claimed it was a real arrest of an ex-member and not an arrest carried out by the organization.
Trial of the Church of Scientology postponed until June Madrid, 28 abr (EFE The tribunal that was begin, as of May 3, Wednesday, its trial against the member sof the Church of Scientology, has suspended the hearing, juast as has been requested by the defense lawyers of the 17 accused and has set the trial to reconvene oral arguments on the 6th of June.
The defense lawyers of the accused filed for the delay yesterday in writing to the court in order to determine certain payments to the Agencia Tributaria in order to regulate the number of those that would have access to the proceeding, thus delaying yet again the iniciation of the trial against 17 persons, among them the world wide leader of the church of scientology, Heber Jentzsch, accused by the prosecutor of 12 crimes though different sentences are asked for various of the defendants. These are: illegal work conditions against freedom and security in the workplace, crimes against public health, defrauding the treasury, threats, impersonating a professional and faking a crime. This organization implanted itself in Spain in 1968. Investigations began at the start of 1987 and the next year 37 members where detained, including Jentzsch, in a police raid of a Madrid Hotel during a church congress where they celebrated.
The representative of the Public Ministry maintains in his provisional conclusions that the real idea behind the organization is profit and self-enrichment. He nderlines that in order to obtain such disproportionate gains such as those strived for by Scientology, to the point of having converted itself into an authentic multinational, the organization does not disdain any means or method, be they legal or illegal, nor in the presentation of itself and its associates while in front of official organisms as entities without motivation of profit. He ads that its lack of scruples are so extensive that many of its illegal activities are sanctioned by its own documents, like the obtaining and archiving of data concerning persons so that those persons will do the dirty work for them, collecting this information with the end in mind of using it at an opportune moment.
In addition, the Public Minister points out that the "cult of covetousness" has its not only in the employment of tricks and wiles to avoid the prosecutorial judgement in a country suspicious of them (in the way they attempted to promote themselves as a church or religion and as an association with no profit motive), but also of its unabashed use of agressive tactics and means to avoid judgement.
The church affirms that process of law allows it a response to these questions.