Great Brookham, Surrey - DAILY MAIL
PUBLISHED: 06:10 GMT, 18 April 2004 | UPDATED: 07:31 GMT, 18 April 2004
TEENAGE 'CULT' MEMBERS STRIKE TWICE IN ONE MONTH TO USE ABANDONED VEHICLES FOR OFFERINGS
Abandoned cars may be used for cult activities, authorities reported. James Absher, 40, a resident of Great Brookham, reported Monday that there were people trespassing into his scrapyard for unusual activities and provided security footage.
In March, Mr. Absher started finding remains of bonfires and sand drawings around in his scrapyard. He did not report this to the local authorities, believing that the intruders meant no harm. On March 25th, a week after the first sighting, Mr. Absher found the burnt remains of a 1994 Toyota Camry.
"I was worried that they would accidentally burn down the whole yard," Mr. Absher told reporters. "These cars can still be sold, even if they no longer work. Metal is pricey these days, you know. I don't want no hooligans snooping in my yard."
He set up cameras around the yard hoping to gather footage of the intrusion and burnings. On the eve of the 15th, he finally saw the intruders.
"I can't afford security guards, so it's the best I can get. I watch the recorded tapes every morning. What I saw terrified me. A group of hooded figures came gathering into my scrapyard, and walked up to another car. They started drawing some stuff into the ground, and some people put stuff they brought around the car, and then they stood in a circle around the car. They looked like they were chanting. They walked up to the car one by one, and did something in the car that I couldn't see. After they all went to the car and left, one guy, probably the leader or something, threw some stuff on the car and lit it on fire. The people started kneeling down, and stayed down until the fire was gone. The record shows they came around 2 and left around 5. As soon as I finished watching, I took the tape straight to the police. I don't think I even drove there to check the car they used."
Initial investigations in the yard found roughly drawn patterns of clockwork machinery and geometric symbols in the ground surrounding the burnt remains of a 1996 Ford Mondeo. Police also found items such as smashed clocks, gears and metal pipes. Unburnt traces of blood were found in the backseat of the car. Further investigations only identified local teenagers Stuart Buschman, 19, and Margot Allsop, 17, on Tuesday. Police confiscated diaries, notes, robes, daggers, and other artifacts believed to be connected to the cult. Ongoing investigations hope to identify more people that were involved.
"It's shocking to know this," Mr. Absher told authorities. "People will worship anything these days."
"I just find it to be abhorrent. Using cars for rituals — it's out of the question. I don't understand people today and what motivates them," local resident Shanon Epperly said. "It's creepy. It makes you wonder what are they going to do with it. How's it going to end up? Is it a joke, is it a dare? What are they going to do with it?"
The teens arrested revealed that they were trying out rituals from a relatively unknown cult that they came into contact with while browsing the Internet. Named "Church of the Broken God", the cult worships clockwork and believes that God is broken and will one day be reformed. The arrested teens refuse to reveal the site where they got the information regarding the cult. Further interrogation yielded no results. Authorities encourage anyone with further information to contact them.
"He came to us, showed us the way online— He wanted us to spread His Broken word. We were in the yard to give Him a sacrifice," Stuart Buschman told reporters on the 17th. "We are His Broken Servants."
The other teen involved, Margot Allsop, told reporters, "Stuart started acting weird after he heard of that Church. He made up all these rituals. He got a few friends to try it. This is just a mere offering, I guess. We're not even sure we're doing it right. I thought it was just a joke at first."
The teens' parents said they had no comment.