DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — The bulk of Friday's testimony in the trial against Eligio Bishop, also known as "Natureboy," focused on how cult leaders gain power wrapping up the first week of the trial.
DeKalb County prosecutors allege Bishop was the power-hungry leader of the “Carbon Nation” cult and abused members who broke the group’s rules with two key testimonies.
Bishop is charged with rape and false imprisonment of a former member of the cult.
The founder and director of Cult Education Institute, Rick Alan Ross, took the stand on Friday.
"For years, I had known about the Bishop and his activities. This was not a group that was new to me. This was a group that I had learned about years ago," said Ross.
But, the defense questioned his qualifications to be considered an expert due to his lack of professional degrees.
Friday's developments come after the victim in the case gave a powerful and emotional testimony further explaining the power she felt Bishop had over her.
"I wasn't able to go. I felt like I couldn’t. I felt powerless, and he kept telling me he wanted to just do it one more time, one more," she said tearfully. "When you disrespect ... you would either go in the corner or do squats or be reprimanded or shunned."
A man who claimed he was in Carbon Nation’s living quarters the night the victim was allegedly raped.
He said he doesn’t know exactly what happened that night but testified about the abuse that went on within the group, including seeing the victim punished and slapped for not submitting to the group’s rules.
The prosecution used his testimony to try to paint a picture of a controlling environment.
"What would happen if someone upset Mr. bishop?" the prosecution questioned.
"I would say that emotional abused people would be isolated," said the witness.
The judge will hear further testimony on Monday.
More on the case
Eligio Bishop, 40, known as "Natureboy," remains in the DeKalb County Jail without bond following his April 2022 arrest. Prosecutors accuse Bishop of leading a cult called the "Carbon Nation" group.
A former member of the cult, who identified herself as his girlfriend, said he posted revenge porn "because she left him." Police reports detailed that the woman told authorities that "she had joined a sex cult in which her boyfriend is the leader" and that "she did live together with Mr. Bishop, and he has posted sexually explicit videos of her and him without her consent on Twitter (now the social media platform X)."
In July 2022, a grand jury indicted Bishop on rape, false imprisonment and three counts of prohibition on nude or sexually explicit electronic transmissions.
According to The Costa Rica Star newspaper, the group's history includes being thrown out of at least three Central American countries. The newspaper reported the cult believes in nudism, polygamy and refraining from bathing.