Oroville “prophet” sentenced to 225 years for assaults

Oroville “prophet” – Sansue Bee Vang, founder and leader of a Hmong religious organization in Oroville, was sentenced Tuesday to 225 years in prison for molesting four young girls and raping two women. The case stemmed from a 2024 disclosure by an 11-year-old and her mother and ex

The sentencing was supposed to mark an ending, but in court it sounded more like a beginning of what survivors would have to live with long after the prison term was announced.

Sansue Bee Vang. 58. was sentenced Tuesday to 225 years in prison for molesting four young girls and raping two women from the religious group authorities described as a Hmong movement. The Butte County District Attorney’s Office said Vang was found guilty of eight counts of child molestation and three counts of rape after a seven-day trial in February. As part of his sentence, he is required to register as a sex offender.

Judge Philip Heithecker heard testimony and statements from five of the six named victims. and the district attorney’s office said the women described the lasting impact the sexual assaults had on their lives. “All the women commented on the lasting impact the sexual assaults had on their lives,” the press release said. “They told the judge that Vang’s actions continue to impact their mental health and their relationships with their families.”.

The case began in 2024 after an 11-year-old and her mother came forward to disclose that Vang sexually assaulted them. Investigators then identified four additional women who testified against Vang, authorities said.

At trial. prosecutors presented evidence describing the breadth of Vang’s sexual assaults against women and girls and how his authority within the group shaped the abuse. In one instance. the child testified that the molestations became more intense over time and that Vang threatened to beat her if she disclosed the violent acts. according to evidence presented at trial. In another instance. prosecutors said documents alleged that a woman was forced to have sexual intercourse with Vang; if she did not comply. the documents said. he warned that “terrible things would happen to her family and the Hmong community.”.

Vang was the founder. creator and leader of a Hmong religious organization called Kev Ntseeg Leej Niam Kee Tiam Vaj Lis Thum. which can be loosely translated to “belief in the mother.” Authorities said the organization was originally founded in Appleton. Wisconsin. where it gained a following before moving to Fresno in 2015.

The district attorney’s office said Vang selected families from Wisconsin. Minnesota. North Carolina and Fresno in 2020 to relocate to Oroville in order to build a temple at the base of Table Mountain. Authorities said every person named in the case was a member of the religious organization. with Vang referred to as the leader or “prophet.” They said he created the readings. songs and requirements for the movement.

Even with a life sentence handed down by the court—described by prosecutors as the maximum allowed by law in this case—Vang could still be eligible for parole in 20 years. The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation fact sheet cited by authorities says the state’s law allows those aged 50 years or older to qualify for release after 20 years of “continuous incarceration.” Under that rule. Vang would be 78 when he would first qualify for parole.

For the victims, though, the sentence didn’t close the case so much as give it a date. In the courtroom, the women’s accounts made one point clear: the harm described in testimony did not end when the verdict was reached—it continued into relationships, mental health, and family life.

Sansue Bee Vang Oroville Hmong religious organization Kev Ntseeg Leej Niam Kee Tiam Vaj Lis Thum child molestation rape sex offender registration Philip Heithecker Butte County District Attorney