[ad_1]
\n<\/p>\n
Twelve members of a religious group have been arrested over the death of an eight-year-old girl in Australia.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Elizabeth Struhs died on January 7 at a home south of Brisbane after not taking her insulin for nearly a week.<\/p>\n
Earlier this year, her parents were accused of murder, torture and failure to provide the necessities of life.<\/p>\n
According to the BBC, police said they will charge 12 other people, aged 19 to 64, over the girl’s death.<\/p>\n
The group was aware of Elizabeth’s worsening condition but did not seek help, Queensland Police said in a statement.<\/p>\n
Her parents, Jason and Kerrie Struhs, are members of a small religious group in the city of Toowoomba that is not affiliated with any mainstream church, according to local media.<\/p>\n
Police allege the pair and others prayed for Elizabeth’s recovery after she became seriously ill.<\/p>\n
Detective Chief Inspector Garry Watts said police were surprised by what they found, calling the investigation unprecedented.<\/p>\n
“In my 40 years of policing, I have never faced a case like this,”<\/em> he said.<\/p>\n “And I’m not aware of a similar event in Queensland, let alone Australia.”<\/em><\/p>\n At a fundraiser set up to support Elizabeth’s siblings, her older sister Jayde Struhs said her family was devastated and heartbroken.<\/p>\n “We have faced the brutal reality, the people who should have protected him have not taken care of him. We may never know the full extent of what happened.”<\/em>she wrote.<\/p>\n She said her estranged parents were part of a cult “driven by fear and control” that drove the faith to its extremes.<\/p>\n The 12 people arrested on Tuesday are expected to appear in court on Wednesday. Jason and Kerrie Struhs are due back in court later in July.<\/p>\n \n<\/p>\n top channel
\n<\/strong>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n