Private Investigations: Criminal Sects

Argo investigative agency provides investigative consulting and services to individuals who have become part, even through coercion, of cult circles or satanic sects, or who are victims of magicians, gurus, healers, and fortune-tellers who, also through tricks and deception, create conditions of distress and psychological subjugation in order to obtain unjust profits.

According to Article 19 of the Italian Constitution, everyone has the right to freely profess their religious faith in any form, individually or in association, to promote it, and to practice it in private or in public, provided that the rites are not contrary to public decency. However, episodes often occur that go far beyond what is established in Article 19—we are talking about criminal sects and new religious movements. These associative phenomena override the rights established by the Constitution by engaging in actual criminal acts.

Currently, there are numerous sects of all kinds in Italy. These groups range from esoteric, magical, and ufological circles to the well-known satanic sects and health-oriented aggregations practicing alternative medicine, up to human potential groups, the so-called “psycho-sects”. All these groups—especially satanic sects and psycho-sects—may commit various types of crimes such as desecration of graves and corpses, thefts in churches and sacred art shops, drug use, animal abuse, fraud, and in severe cases, even incitement to suicide and ritual killings.

Since 1981, the Court of Cassation has declared unconstitutional one of the key laws regarding new religious movements, namely the crime of coercion (plagio), provided by Article 603 of the Penal Code. Unfortunately, coercion still exists today and is defined as “mental manipulation” or brainwashing, typical of sects and closed groups.

Brainwashing is often carried out by gurus and spiritual leaders—the heads of these groups—through sophisticated techniques of mental manipulation in order to embed the group’s ideology in the mind of the new follower. In this way, the victim becomes compliant with any request made by the leader and their entourage.

Private investigation in this controversial field is particularly complex; for this reason, it is advisable to turn to professionals in the sector, also depending on the type of sect being investigated. Investigations into new religious movements require strong mental skills and a clear detachment from the professed cult; investigating followers or presumed followers of psycho-sects requires meticulous work based on more distanced, low-profile investigative techniques—therefore much more discreet and difficult compared to traditional ones—precisely because the individuals involved are aware of not maintaining a moral or transparent conduct.

This becomes even more significant when dealing with youth-oriented or extreme satanic sects, especially because members of these groups make excessive use of drugs and alcohol, making the investigator’s work more difficult. In such cases, the approach must be maintained at a distance, and infiltration becomes harder, particularly because these groups tend to act far from prying eyes.

As for investigative actions regarding groups practicing new forms of medicine and alternative therapies, recovery disciplines, or healing methods, the investigator’s observation may occur at closer range—at least during the indoctrination phase—because these groups are constantly seeking new members to draw into their network of financial scams.

Argo investigative agency provides investigative consulting and services to individuals who have become part, even through coercion, of cult circles or satanic sects, or who are victims of magicians, gurus, healers, and fortune-tellers who, also through tricks and deception, create conditions of distress and psychological subjugation in order to obtain unjust profits.