JIM FOSTER (PH), KRAIG'S (PH)FATHERHe's right there. He's right there. He's right behind thesign.
PAT FOSTER, KRAIG'S MOTHER Where?
JIM FOSTER See him?
PAT FOSTER Oh, my God!
JIM FOSTER No. No.
PAT FOSTER It's not?
JIM FOSTER I thought it was. False alarm. Sorryabout that.
DIANE SAWYER (VO) Jim Foster has beenlooking for his son, Kraig, for 14 years. Kraig was awarm, smart business major at Humboldt StateUniversity in California, when he met and succumbed inonly one week to a recruiter for The Brethren. On theother side of the country, Charles and Dorothy Rooney(ph) have traveled from Boston to New York to spendyet another weekend looking for their son, Patrick. Shesays she had always worried, but about the wrongthings.
DOROTHY ROONEY, PATRICK'S MOTHERDrinking and alcohol and AIDS. I worried about a lot ofthings, but I never worried about this. I didn't know therewas any ...
CHARLES ROONEY, PATRICK'S FATHER Anykind of such danger existed.
DIANE SAWYER (VO) Their boy, Patrick, was apopular athlete, a nationally ranked skier in high schooland a skateboarder. His parents say he was not evenparticularly religious. Yet two weeks after meeting arecruiter for The Brethren, he sold his gear, quit collegeand has never called home. His parents are baffled thattheir gregarious kid became the withdrawn figure in thissurveillance photo taken by another parent.
CHARLES ROONEY We're going to have pickthings up a little bit here ...
DIANE SAWYER (VO) This day, following a lead,the Rooneys spot two Brethren on Staten Island andfollow them secretly to corner them on the ferry.
CHARLES ROONEY Do you belong to a groupcalled the Jim Roberts group? Or The Brethren? We'relooking for my son. My son's name is Patrick.
DIANE SAWYER (VO) The brothers are cold andunmoved.
DOROTHY ROONEY You're not listening, are you?You're not listening.
CHARLES ROONEY Do you know what we'retalking about? Do you understand that kind of an innerfeeling and love for people, particularly family, your ownfamily?
DIANE SAWYER (VO) The brothers finally say theydon't know Patrick. For the 20th time in a year and ahalf, the Rooneys go back home empty-handed.
CHARLES ROONEY Now his second olderbrother's getting married, and he wants Patrick hometo be the best man. (Crying)
DIANE SAWYER (VO) Before they left the ferry, theimpassive men in the tunics sent a message. Repent.
JIM SIEGELMAN, CULT EXPERT They use theBible practically to tie a rope around these people'smind.
DIANE SAWYER (VO) Jim Siegelman and FloConway (ph) have studied cults for 20 years. They saythe Roberts group hijacks kids with lightning speed byusing what their parents taught-high moral standards,respect for the Bible.
JIM SIEGELMAN They'll talk to students. They talkto people for a couple of hours, and someone will say,"I'm not sure I want to go off with you. Let me thinkabout this." They go, "If you think about this, the devil isgoing to pluck the seed we've planted from your mind."
DIANE SAWYER (on camera) Does it mean theirparents did something wrong?
JIM SIEGELMAN No, I'd say more often than not, itmeans their parents did something right. Their parentslet these kids be open-minded.
1ST FORMER BRETHREN MEMBER There is aplace in Bible where Jesus said a man's enemies willarise out of those-his own family. But Jim Robertsturned that around and presented a case that everyonein your family is your enemy.
DIANE SAWYER (VO) These former Brethren, alldevout Christians, were members of the group rangingfrom 14 months to 15 years. They say Robertspromised a truly spiritual life but ruled with a weapon offear. (on camera) But families, the Bible is full offamilies.
1ST FORMER BRETHREN MEMBER You had nochoice because it was a package deal. If youcommunicated with your family, you were put out of thegroup. In his mind, he was sending them to hellbecause, you know, that was what it meant to leave thegroup in his mind.
DIANE SAWYER (VO) They told us submission toRoberts and his brethren began with isolation and agradual loss of identity. They changed their names toHebrew, spent six and seven hours a day studying theBible and singing hymns like this one.
FORMER BRETHREN MEMBERS (singing) Andhow pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together.
DIANE SAWYER (VO) And copying scripture in tinyuniform handwriting. They not only gave all theirpossessions and money to the group, but in the nameof piety, gave up their laughter and joy.
2ND FORMER BRETHREN MEMBER Weweren't allowed to show emotion. It's not that it wasn'tthere. We just weren't allowed to show it.
DIANE SAWYER (VO) The rule in his group is nosex without marriage. But the former members sayRoberts has allowed no marriages in the last eightyears.
2ND FORMER BRETHREN MEMBER Iremember Jim Roberts telling me once that lookingleads to liking, liking leads to lusting and lusting leadsto sin.
DIANE SAWYER (VO) The women did the cookingand cleaning and were told to keep their heads downand be shame-faced. The men did the recruiting andforaging for food. The former members showed us howand told us one male in every cell sent reports toRoberts. But even through suffering, people remainedobedient. The former members said abscessed teethwould go untreated. So would broken bones becauseRoberts allowed no outside medical care. They told usa child had died from lack of medical care. (on camera)Did you want to say to them take the child to ahospital?
3RD FORMER BRETHREN MEMBER Well, I didtell the sisters that short of taking the child to a hospital,you know, it will die.
2ND FORMER BRETHREN MEMBER Eventhough many of us would have liked to seen this childtaken to the hospital, we wouldn't dare say-suggest it.
DIANE SAWYER Does it seem inconceivable toyou now that you stood by as a child was dying?
2ND FORMER BRETHREN MEMBER Yeah.
DIANE SAWYER What do you think he cared aboutthe most, Jim Roberts?
4TH FORMER BRETHREN MEMBER Control.
1ST FORMER BRETHREN MEMBER Yes.
4TH FORMER BRETHREN MEMBER Bottomline, control.
1ST FORMER BRETHREN MEMBER Yes.Control.
DIANE SAWYER But who decided when you wouldmove and who would go where?
1ST FORMER BRETHREN MEMBER Hedecided all of that.
2ND FORMER BRETHREN MEMBER He was aman of mystery, which led you to believe that there wasa holiness about him because you didn't know him.
DIANE SAWYER (VO) Roberts was the son of aPaducah, Kentucky, Pentecostal minister-a poorstudent who, after a stint in the Marines, ran ahairdressing shop before forming a religious group ofhis own in the '70s. Today, he's said to be bizarre,spacey, a wanderer. He's been seen using pay phonesto send instructions to his lieutenants like this man,Jonathan, a cell leader in Berkeley. These formermembers who once lived by his instructions say theyleft the group 10 years to 20 years ago becausesomehow they came to see him as more a manipulatorthan leader. (on camera) What advice would you giveto parents terrified that their child will wander into this?(No response)
DIANE SAWYER Silence. (VO) It's hard to knowhow to protect your children when their good intentionsare what make them vulnerable.
JUDY WILCOX, BART'S MOTHER He was theall-American kid.
LARRY WILCOX, BART'S FATHER The kind ofchild that you pray for.
DIANE SAWYER (VO) It has been seven yearssince Judy and Larry Wilcox's son, Bart, a formerexchange scholar in South Africa-an athlete, aChristian-sent his mother this hand-drawn birthdaycard from the University of Idaho, thanking her for beingsuch a great mom. A few days later, he met a memberof The Brethren. Another letter arrived.
LARRY WILCOX "Mom and Dad, I've dropped outof school. I've given everything away. Don't worry aboutme."DIANE SAWYER (VO) And not long after that, abombshell-in the tiny scrawl used by the otherBrethren.
LARRY WILCOX It said "God willing, this will be thelast time you ever hear from me."
DIANE SAWYER (VO) Months later, as they weresearching for Bart at this Portland house, he duckedout a window while they went in the front door. Andthen, last year in Phoenix ...
LARRY WILCOX In many cases, we tried to get tohim. In some, we barely missed him. In one, I walked byhim.
JUDY WILCOX And didn't know it.
DIANE SAWYER (VO) Bart was lying nearby,asleep on a bench. Today, the Wilcoxes pass out flyersand maintain a Web site in hopes of finding their son.But this is one of the men who tries to make sure theycan't. That lieutenant of the Berkeley cell, Jonathan. Wesaw him hauling garbage back from a dumpster. Butwhen we asked him about it, he bristled.
JONATHAN, THE BRETHREN CULT MEMBERA friend of mine found these. But what's wrong withthat? If people want to say you're Garbage Eaters, thenmaybe they need to rethink it.
DIANE SAWYER (VO) We did some research onJonathan and were surprised to learn that he keeps apersonal bank account, an inheritance of thousands ofdollars. And unlike many of the others, he sometimessees his family. So when we saw him once more bikingto a pay phone, we followed. As we said, that's how hegets instructions from Jim Roberts. (on camera) Areyou talking to Mr Roberts?
JONATHAN No, I'm not.
DIANE SAWYER Could I speak with him?
JONATHAN It's not him.
DIANE SAWYER (VO) He refused to shake myhand, saying he doesn't touch women. So we askedabout the three young men whose parents are in suchpain-the Wilcoxes, the Rooneys, the Fosters. (oncamera) Is it possible for you to tell us where KraigFoster is?
JONATHAN No. I don't know where he is.
DIANE SAWYER Can you tell us where Bart Wilcoxis?
JONATHAN I don't know that either.
DIANE SAWYER Patrick Rooney.
JONATHAN I don't know who he is. I don't knowwhere those people are.
DIANE SAWYER Can you tell us someone who canfind them for us? Can you help us find them?
JONATHAN They're OK.
DIANE SAWYER You don't know them, but youknow they're OK?
JONATHAN Well, excuse me. I do know Patrick. Iknow all three of them. At first, I didn't know who youmeant, but I do know. They're fine. They're fine. Theirparents know what they're doing.
DIANE SAWYER Why-are parents the enemy?
JONATHAN It's really grievous. Sometimes theycan be, OK? Sometimes they do. They do. They have,in the past, kidnapped their children. They've takenthem by force.
DIANE SAWYER But not recently. Nobody's beentaken by force.
JONATHAN We've been hiding for that reason, sothey can't do it.
DIANE SAWYER But you see your parents?
JONATHAN Yeah?
DIANE SAWYER Yeah.
JONATHAN Well, I have.
DIANE SAWYER Yeah, so why can't they?
JONATHAN It's their choice. It is. It's their choice.
DIANE SAWYER (VO) Before we left, we madeone more try with Jonathan. Would he at least deliver toBart Wilcox some letters from his family. (on camera)As God is your witness, do you promise to deliverthese letters?
JONATHAN No. I don't. I don't promise.
DIANE SAWYER (VO) Reluctantly, he agreed.
JONATHAN I'll take the letters, but you guys arereally grievous. You all are really grievous. You'repainted up like jezebel. You, yeah, it's sickening. Youare all really grievous people.
DIANE SAWYER (on camera) In a moment, you'llsee what happens when some parents do find theirchildren. But as you can imagine, there is oftenheartbreak in these stories. You remember theRooneys, the parents we saw on the Staten Island ferryat the beginning of this piece? Well, in an earlierexpedition in search of their son Patrick, some otherparents were taking surveillance photos as MrRooney-he's there in the light baseball cap-talked toone of The Brethren. When the Rooneys came homeand looked at the photos, they realized that their sonhad been standing only a few feet away from his father,who didn't know it.
(Commercial Break)
ANNOUNCER A dramatic meeting between amother and son she could barely recognize, years afterhis disappearance into a shadowy group.
GEORGIA BUSWEILER I got face to face, and Ijust said, "Do you know me?"
ANNOUNCER And watch PrimeTime's surprisingencounter with the reclusive leader of The Brethren,when PrimeTime continue after this from our ABCstations. (Station Break)
ANNOUNCER PrimeTime-from New York, DianeSawyer.
DIANE SAWYER As we said, the law now makes itdifficult for parents to seize their children. Of course,presuming that they can find them, and only JimRoberts knows where they are among The Brethren.Beyond that, our experts tell us that members of thisgroup are particularly hard to talk out. So what areparents to do? Take the case of a young man whodisappeared three years ago and what, in some ways,is the most baffling recruit of all. (VO) At age 25, DonBusweiler (ph) was a vibrant young entrepreneur with alucrative clothing line called Pervert worn by JanetJackson and other stars. He'd been a model himselfand owned his own clothing store in South MiamiBeach. But it was stressful, and suddenly, one day hetossed his belongings into the Atlantic and said he'dfound God with The Brethren. That was three yearsago. These are surveillance photos of Busweiler takenin California. And when his mother, Georgia, saw them,she flew out to find him.
JIM FOSTER That's a brother right there.
GEORGIA BUSWEILER, DON'S MOTHER That'snot Don.
JIM FOSTER No. That's not Don.
DIANE SAWYER (VO) She was helped in hersearch by another parent, Jim Foster, whom you met atthe top of our story. For four days, they searchedtogether futilely.
GEORGIA BUSWEILER I just feel like it'shopeless. I just feel like I'm not ever going to find him.
DIANE SAWYER (VO) Then last week, Georgia gotword that Don had shown up in Houston. There he is,sitting in a cafe, perhaps trying to recruit someone,when his mother walks into the door.
GEORGIA BUSWEILER I was getting close, andI'm like, he's not reacting. He's just staring at me, and Iwas staring at him. I got face-to-face and I just said,"Do you know me?" And he said, "Yeah, ma."And I lost it. I hugged him, and then I just asked him,"Please don't run away." And he said, "I'm not going torun away."
DIANE SAWYER (VO) He told her he was pursuinga life with God and that The Brethren are now hisfamily. He said he hadn't called her for fear she'dkidnap or try to deprogram him. She promised shewouldn't but said she needs him in her life. After eighthours, she was about to leave when he surprised her.
GEORGIA BUSWEILER He said, "Ma, come here."And he grabbed me and hugged me. It was like sogreat. I still can't believe he did it. I was just so happyand fortunate just that I got to hug him and let him knowhow I feel.
DIANE SAWYER (VO) But the next day, he refusedto meet with her again. At the end of last week, hereturned a call but told her he was staying in the group.
GEORGIA BUSWEILER I'm just going to give itsome time, and hopefully he'll keep in touch with me.Because I told him if he did that, I wouldn't be searchingall over the world for him. And all he did was keeptelling me he'd pray about it.
FLO CONWAY, CULT EXPERT These parents areup against artillery in terms of the kind of programmingthat these people are going through 24 hours a day.
DIANE SAWYER (VO) Again, experts Flo Conwayand Jim Siegelman. They say there's no magic phrasethat can snap someone out of the hammerlock of a cult.
JIM SIEGELMAN That's why this phenomenon is soinsidious because these people can be in that wakingtrance state for years at a time and tell you that theytotally believe that they've made a free choice, that theytotally believe they are in control of their mind.
DIANE SAWYER (VO) Which brings us back to JimFoster, who has spent $75,000 and 14 years lookingfor his son Kraig. Kraig-the loving boy, the Eaglescout, the college business major. Who, before hevanished, sent his parents this letter.
JIM FOSTER "I don't know when I will contact youagain, probably not for a while."
DIANE SAWYER (VO) During the course of thispiece, Jim Foster got word that Kraig had been sightedin New Orleans. He gathered his wife, Pat, and Kraig'solder brother, Keith. They had rehearsed this momentfor years-how they're remind him of the old days, howthey'd mount a psychological assault with love. Withtheir binoculars and video cameras, they had parkedacross from this rundown house near the FrenchQuarter, when another member of The Brethren cameup and accused them of stalking. Jim started anintense negotiation. He said other members couldstand guard if only he could speak to his son. After 14years, finally Kraig came riding up. The 18-year-oldwas now 32. He didn't hug them and spoke mostly byquoting scriptures.
PAT FOSTER I didn't sense that he was feelinganything. It was all rote. All-- everything he said wasrelated to scripture that he'd memorized.
JIM FOSTER Kraig told us that he was loving us byremaining separate from us.
PAT FOSTER But he didn't even want to smile. Isaid, "Do you ever smile?" And he said "I try not to."
JIM FOSTER We're a threat to him. Because if weget through to him, and he leaves the church, to him,he's going to hell.
DIANE SAWYER (VO) Kraig gave them only anhour. They could feel time running out.
KEITH FOSTER, KRAIG'S BROTHER It felt reallypowerless to reach him. I told Kraig that I feel caughtbetween wondering whether to grieve for himpermanently or to hope for him to return. And hisimmediate response was "grieve me permanently."
DIANE SAWYER (VO) Kraig climbed back on hisbike and rode off. As he left, he asked them to stopsearching for him. They made no promise.
JIM FOSTER I told him, I said, you know, "I've notagreed to anything here."
DIANE SAWYER (VO) When he was almost out ofsight, his brother Keith walked toward the fence.
KEITH FOSTER I shouted out, you know, "I loveyou, and I miss you."
DIANE SAWYER (VO) And one more thinghappened in the course of our report. One day, wewere staking out a Brethren house in Richmond,California, when a man walked by. We wondered, didhe look familiar? The next day a PrimeTime producerfollowed him as he walked to a bus stop. Asimpossible as it seems, this was the man from that old1975 picture of the elder.
PrimeTime PRODUCER Mr Roberts, I'm withPrimeTime.
DIANE SAWYER (VO) Out of the public eye for 23years, Jim Roberts surfaces again-strangely jumpyand nervous. We noticed his hair looked dyed, and heseemed to be carrying a computer case. We said wewanted to know about his group.
JIM ROBERTS We no ways believe that we're acult.
PrimeTime PRODUCER What about your views onfamily? A lot of people feel like you are encouragingyour members to cut their ties with their families.
JIM ROBERTS Well, sometimes we do thatbecause of what Christ taught.
PrimeTime PRODUCER And what is that, sir?
JIM ROBERTS Well, maybe at a later time, I couldspeak with you.
PrimeTime PRODUCER OK, well, would you? Howcould I reach you?
JIM ROBERTS Pardon?
PrimeTime PRODUCER How could I reach you?
JIM ROBERTS Well, I need to catch this bus now.
DIANE SAWYER (VO) We remembered what oneof the parents had told us.
PARENT Like the vampires, I don't think JimRoberts can stand the light of day. And he doesn't wantto be in a position where he has to defend what hedoes.
DIANE SAWYER (VO) And how does he answerthe other scriptures, the one that says, "Honor thy fatherand mother?" The one that says, "Return to the parentsfor this is acceptable in the sight of God? "(on camera) And the parents say one thing you cando is tell your children about groups like this, warn themto be on guard. You can get more information on thisstory on our Web site at abcnews.com on the Web orAOL.