A US couple has been charged with fatally beating their 19-year-old son inside a church

THEY beat their sheltered teenage sons as part of church “counselling” sessions. One of the boys was punched to death.

Charged ... A US couple has been charged with fatally beating their 19-year-old son inside a church. Picture: AP

A CENTRAL New York couple has been charged with fatally beating their 19-year-old son inside a church and four fellow church members have been charged with assault in an attack that also left the young man’s brother severely injured, police said Tuesday.

Bruce Leonard, 65, and Deborah Leonard, 59, of Clayville, were charged with first-degree manslaughter in the death of their son Lucas, said Lt. Timothy O’Neill of the New Hartford Police Department. O’Neill said Lucas Leonard died Monday after he was beaten at Word of Life Church in New Hartford, which is 120 kilometres northwest of Albany.

Killers ... A US couple has been charged with fatally beating their 19-year-old son inside a church. Picture: AP

A police official said the brutal beatings were part of what members considered a “counseling session.”

New Hartford Police Chief Michael Inserra said that both Lucas and his brother Christopher Leonard were subjected to hours of physical punishment at the Word of Life Church “in hopes that each would confess to prior sins and ask for forgiveness.”

Inserra says investigators are still looking into what the supposed sins were. He said there’s no indication, at this point, that the issue was sexual assault.

Six church members, including the victims’ parents and sister, are now locked up on charges they assaulted the two young men on Monday.

Police said more arrests are expected as the investigation continues. Details about the attack or what may have led up to it have not been disclosed.

The investigation began about 12.30pm Monday when family members brought Lucas Leonard to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Investigators determined that the Word of Life Church was the scene of the crime, and the building was surrounded by special operations teams from state and local police agencies.

Police eventually entered the church, a three-storey brick building on a residential street that originally housed a school. Several church members were interviewed, and several children were turned over to child welfare officials.

In addition to the Leonards, police arrested David Morey, 26, of Utica; Linda Morey, 54, of Utica; Sarah Ferguson, 33, who lives at the same address as the Leonards; and Joseph Irwin, 26, who lives in the church building.

Oneida County District Attorney Scott McNamara declined to comment on a motive or other details of the case. He said a preliminary hearing for all six defendants is scheduled for Friday.

Originally published as A US couple has been charged with fatally beating their 19-year-old son inside a church