Ria (00:04) Hey, what's up? Welcome back to Haynes Beliefs. This is a podcast where I tell you about true crime stories that are influenced by people's beliefs, whether it's religion or cults. I think they're the same thing, but who's asking my opinion? And also ideologies or just beliefs in general, OK? I'm your host, Rhea, and if this is your first time here, welcome.

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Today we're talking about Yahweh Ben Yahweh. If you've never heard about Yahweh Ben Yahweh before, Yahweh Ben Yahweh is Hebrew Israelite final boss, okay? This man went from being a preacher's kid to claiming he was literally the son of God. He started a cult that had Miami on lock in the 80s,

Behind their white robes and all their talk of empowerment, it was a straight up horror movie in there.

Get your tea, get your blanket, cozy up, get your coffee. Let's get into it.

All right. Before Yahweh Ben Yahweh was Yahweh Ben Yahweh, he was Hulan Mitchell Jr. He had a few names in between this, but we'll get to that. He was born on October 27th.

1935 in Kingfisher, Oklahoma. Hulan grew up in a big religious family. His dad, Hulan Sr., was a strict preacher at the Antioch Church of God in Christ, and his mother, Pearl, played the piano at the church. Hulan was one of 15 kids, and even as a kid, people noticed he had a presence. When he spoke, people listened. They said he could hold the crowd like it was nothing.

But life in Jim Crow South wasn't easy. Hulan saw how racism and poverty hit his community hard. He carried that frustration with him. After high school, he joined the military. It was where he learned the structure and discipline skills he'll later need to flip his organization.

When Hulan left the service, he tried to go to law school but it didn't stick. A regular nine to five wasn't for him. In 1960s, he joined the Nation of Islam, also known as NOI. That's when things started to click for him. He took the name Hulan X because he was obsessed with Malcolm X.

He listened to his speeches. He followed everything that he did. He even started to dress like him. He was quite literally wanting to turn into Malcolm. Hulan wanted that same kind of power, but he didn't want to follow, you know, he didn't want to follow people. He wanted to be followed. He wanted to be the leader. He was bigger than that. He had bigger plans.

By the late 1960s, Hulong was hopping from city to city, honing his craft, building a foundation for his future cult. In Atlanta, he reinvented himself as Father Mitchell, a charismatic preacher claiming to have divine visions and direct line to God.

His sermons were fiery and magnetic, designed to grab the attention of black communities struggling with systemic racism and hardship. Hulan preached empowerment, urging his audience to see him as the savior sent to guide them out of oppression. After time as Father Mitchell, he moved on and took on the persona of Reverend Hulan Shah.

Under this name, he adopted elements from Christian theology, Islam, the nation of Islam's teachings, Jewish traditions, and some other black empowerment leaders. Hulan was a master at blending doctrines to create something that felt fresh and unique, drawing people in searching for meaning and purpose. These people were lost. A lot of the times he was in impoverished.

black communities that were suffering from white people, know, treating them like trash, right? Jim Crow era was a very traumatic time for black people. seeing a savior coming to tell them that, no, no, no, no, this is not forever. There's something coming. We're going to actually get revenge here. It's not far-fetched for people to soak this in and believe him, right?

In each city, Hulan recruited small groups of loyal followers. He had a knack for identifying people who felt overlooked and alienated. Through a manipulation, he built a foundation of devoted believers who were willing to follow him wherever he went. Hulan's time in these cities wasn't just about preaching.

It was about refining his methods. He studied his audience, experimented with his messaging, and learned how to maintain control over his followers. He was rehearsing for what would become the nation of Yahweh, setting the stage for his eventual rise to power.

he was studying his audience, figuring out what message resonated the most. By the time he left each city, he had refined his rhetoric and tactics, changing his name, completely changing his sermons. This period of constant reinvention wasn't random. It was a calculated effort to perfect his ability to lead and manipulate, preparing him.

for his ultimate transformation into Yahweh ben Yahweh.

when Yahweh Ben Yahweh got to Miami, he came in hot. He had his mission. He targeted black communities that were struggling, preaching a message of self-resilience, empowerment, and spiritual awakening. He told people he was sent by God to save them, and a lot of folks bought into it. They saw him as an answer that they've been waiting for.

Yahweh set up the nation of Islam and established a headquarters that was called the Temple of Love. This was not just, you know, where they lived. This was their place of worship. You guys, this was a fortress, okay? It was the heart of his empire. Members were required to tide.

That means that they have to give a significant portion, not the 10%, okay? This is more looking like at least 80 % of whatever they earn was going back into the business, was going back into the temple of love.

Yahweh's businesses included laundromats, grocery stores, car washes. Every dollar went back into building his empire. By the mid 1980s, the nation owned dozens of properties from across Miami. Yahweh's influence got so big in 1990s, Miami's mayor Xavier Suarez declared Yahweh Ben Yahweh Day. Okay.

On the surface, Yahweh was seen as a community leader. He created jobs, provided housing, and preached black empowerment. But behind closed doors, it was a whole different story. Inside that temple of love we were talking about, life looked completely different. Members had to wear all white, you guys. I have a picture up on the Instagram page. If you don't know, we have an Instagram page. It's just called Haynes Beliefs.

We're going to be, well, I am, I'm going to be posting pictures of every episode because we don't have a visual just yet. We are going to get on YouTube, but gradually. But for now, we are going to be posting pictures of each episode so you can see like the key members. They're going to be on the Instagram page. So if you want to see what these people look like, go on the Instagram page because I don't know what is going on here.

But I don't know how they did not get dirty. They all had to wear white. They were all just like, they had the little turbans. They had to tie their heads a certain way. don't, you know what? If I was ever in a cult, I don't know. I feel like I would be one of the first ones to just be like, this is some bullshit, okay?

Daily life started early with morning prayers, followed by hours of work in Yahweh's businesses, which included laundry mats, car washes, grocery stores. If you did not have money from somewhere else, were to work and their work was considered a service to Yahweh and the community.

they all ate together and they all had to eat like simple meals and it was often monitored by, you know, the enforcers to ensure that people were following some strict dietary rules. I think they were like vegetarian or something like that. on top of that,

Yahweh demanded complete separation from the outside world. Members had to cut ties with their family members, friends, and anyone who was not part of the nation of Yahweh.

Letters and phone calls were restricted and visitors to the temple were heavily vetted.

One former member said, you didn't just live there, you were under Yahweh's control 24-7.

The temple itself was run like a fortress. Security was tight with guards posted at entrances and every exit and a regular patrol to watch for anyone that was trying to leave or coming. Getting too curious, asking too many questions, they were not having it. Yahweh kept members busy with a never-ending cycle of prayers, work, teaching, workbooks. They had to study all the time.

Even when they found some of the other deserted members, people that did not wanna follow this anymore, they still had literature from these teachings. Circumcision ceremonies were another major aspect of their daily lives. if you were a male recruit, a new male recruit,

These rituals were seen as a way to purify members and symbolize their commitment to Yahweh's teaching. Sometimes when he did, he actually would do physical examinations, okay? This man was sick. He would actually examine the new recruits or people that were, you know, just not circumcised that were in the temple or part of the temple. And sometimes he would perform the circumcision himself.

He did the circumcision himself, and I didn't see anything that said whether there was anesthesia involved or anything like that. But yeah, for some reason, that was very important to him. I mean, it's important to the Christian God as well, so I'm not surprised. Anyway, men were often pressured to undergo procedures regardless of age.

with Yahweh framing it as spiritual necessity,

Some former members describe the process as painful and humiliating, adding to the psychological hold Yahweh had over them.

Also, wives of the men who were sent out to go do Yahweh's bidding, right, when he would send these men out to go do some task for him, whether it's killing someone or whatever it is, these wives were to stay with Yahweh, okay? These women were expected to maintain absolute loyalty to Yahweh's vision.

They were isolated from the rest of the group during these missions and a lot of them have reported to say that he was sexually assaulting them. Again, you guys, this is not a PG-13 show, so make sure you don't have children around, because this has a lot of details in it that you might not want them to hear.

Anyway, there are reports that say that when these men are on these missions, a lot of the times, Yahweh ben Yahweh is sleeping with their wives and their daughters. Okay. And this was not a specific age. he was taking advantage of anyone and everyone.

the daughters, the mothers, everyone. I mean, the fathers are out there doing his bidding, and he's over here doing these things to their wives and their children. But somehow we still have loyalty to this guy.

Another ex-member said it was like a prison, but you were supposed to be grateful to be there. They made you feel like your life depended on staying there.

I wanna elaborate a little bit on why this is, okay? I was talking a little bit about loyalty earlier, and it's not even something to take lightly because these people were targeted, okay? He chose these specific people on purpose because these were people that not only were in impoverished neighborhoods, he also targeted homeless people, veterans.

You know, people that just did not have anywhere to go, especially in Jim Crow era. Like he is a light skinned man with light eyes. Of course people are gonna wanna follow him. Of course people are gonna wanna, you know, be under his umbrella. He is a power figure at this point and he can protect them, right? He can protect them. He's over here shaking hands with the mayor.

He's boldly able to talk about what he thinks about white people and, you know, somehow still able to build up an organization, build up a cult this big. He's acquiring real estate. He's acquiring businesses, right? He's thriving at this point. So obviously people are like, well, he's doing something right.

He must be doing something, right? He must know the secret. So I'm homeless. I don't have nothing going on. I'm in a racist neighborhood. I'm in a racist state. I'm in a racist country. Of course, people are finding solace in this. Even some of the detectives report that most of the people that they interviewed didn't necessarily believe that he was God. They didn't necessarily believe that this was...

You know, you know, he he wasn't the Yahweh that they believed in. But because he was using Jewish teachings and some Christian teachings and some Islam teachings, People pretty much just took little bits of what they liked and what they believed and just kind of spin on the hamster wheel. Right. they were just there.

They were just there to get fed and have a roof over their heads was pretty much what the detectives were saying. They didn't necessarily want to be there half the time. They didn't necessarily see the good in this. didn't believe that he was the savior or the Messiah, but where else are they going to go? Right? What are you going to do? So it makes sense. Yahweh dangers the man loyalty though. He enforced it with violence.

One of the most infamous cases tied to the nation of Yahweh was the murder of Ashton Green. Ashton Green was a loyal member until he crossed Yahweh. Witnesses said that the Death Angels, the Death Angels were a group of men that Yahweh ben Yahweh, he picked out a group of people, a group of men, right, that were to protect him, one, and also they were his enforcers.

They were the ones doing the killings. They were the ones doing the terrorizing and all of that stuff, right? Yahweh's enforcers lured Green out of his apartment that night.

They told him it was just a meeting, but as soon as they stepped outside, they jumped them. They beat him up with bats, fists, and anything they could find. begged for his life, but they did not stop. When his body was found, it was so messed up, investigators called it overkill. His death was not just a punishment, but it was a warning to everyone else. Green's head was decapitated again, again, again, trigger warning again.

Please get the kids away. So Green's head was decapitated. It was found at a slightly different location from where his body was found. His body was found in a rural area, just like an open field. They weren't trying to hide this. Let me tell you. they weren't trying to be incognito. They said, this is what happens to you when you cross us. So they had him in the field or something like that.

You know, people, someone that was regular in that area called the police and said, hey, there's a body here. It was not here when I walked up this morning. So someone just dropped this body here. So they find the body. They find the head. And his face was so badly disfigured that they really could not tell who he was at first.

They could tell he'd been beaten. They could tell there was a lot of trauma. They could also tell all of that did not happen there. so they figured that someone brought him there to do that. and he was tied up. His hands and his legs were tied up. So.

They knew that someone brought him there to commit that crime.

Another case that.

Another case was that of Raymond Kelly, a homeless man who tragically became a victim of one of the nation of Yahweh's initiation rituals. They used to do initiation rituals where you were to go and bring back a white devil's ear. Okay. Yahweh's new recruits were tasked to prove their loyalty by committing acts of violence, often targeted to individuals that are labeled as white devils.

Kelly was an unhoused man who was vulnerable and likely viewed as an easy target and was chosen by one of the recruits. According to the court testimony, this recruit stalked Kelly for hours before attacking him.

Kelly was beaten, stabbed, and his body was set on fire just so they can ensure that they're passing this message, okay? They're getting to the point. This is what happens to people that we don't like. Especially in this case, there was no, you know.

Motive here apart from trying to show Yahweh some loyalty.

So when you were sent out to go kill one of these white devils, you were supposed to bring back their ear as proof that you killed them. And that is exactly what happened. So when they found Kelly's body, it was so badly mutilated that it was initially difficult to identify. His hands and feet were burned beyond recognition

When investigators found Kelly's body, it was missing his ears. They cut both of his ears off, but they left one and took the other one. And later on in the case, the prosecutor does talk about how he was supposed to bring a jar of ears, okay, that they found, and he was supposed to bring it to the jury and show it to the jury, but he just...

He thought twice about it because he thought that would be too gruesome to show to them. That's how bad it was, okay? He had jars. He literally had jars of these ears. He saved them, okay? So the range much? I don't know.

Some neighbors even claimed that they saw people being dragged out of their apartments, kicking and struggling, but no one dared to step in or speak up because they were scared. when the nation of Yahweh would go and acquire these buildings, a lot of the times, even though they claimed that they were cleaning up these neighborhoods,

a lot of the times, they were chasing people out of their homes. A lot of the times, they were making it inconducive for people to live there, so they would leave and pretty much give them free rein. And when they would encounter any type of resistance whatsoever,

You were done. OK.

In 1986, a neighborhood in Delray, Florida, chased them out like they tried to come and preach to them and pretty much take over one of the apartment buildings and they chased them out. did not want to listen to their gospel. They didn't want to listen to anything they had to say.

At 2 a.m. that same night, the apartment building was firebombed. So it was set on fire, but the people of the nation of Yahweh say they didn't do it. Even Yahweh sent a statement that he didn't have anything to do with it, but he paid those people. He paid them. I can't remember how much he paid them, but he paid them.

So if that's not guilt, I don't know what is. pretty much was marketed as like a good gesture, but that sounds like guilt to me.

one of the people that were trying to leave the nation of Yahweh actually went to the police station to tell them that they were responsible for the fire bombs.

mind you, these firebombs did not only the building down. It also injured a mother and her three children. One of the children was an infant.

But they couldn't do anything about it because all they had was his word. They didn't have any proof of it. Even though Yahweh pays them money later, they still were not able to convict him on

And luckily enough, the same guy that confessed about the fire bombs also confessed to being part of Ashton Green's murder. The man that was beheaded and put in the field, he was also part of that murder. So he's here confessing and he's letting them know like I was part of this, blah, blah. But they still need to gather some more information, right? Because they can't convict anybody just by word of mouth. So he's giving them information, but they need more.

Then something crazier even happened. So one of the apartments that they tried to break into, right, they tried to pretty much commandeer, they encountered some kind of resistance. His name was Anthony Brown. He was not for the oppression, okay? He's like, if y'all don't give me an eviction notice, I'm staying in my house. I'm staying in my apartment.

Anthony Brown was very outspoken about his opinions on Yahweh ben Yahweh. He was not for it. He just told him, you're not going to oppress me. You're not going to take me away from my home.

And unfortunately, that night Anthony Brown was murdered in the apartment complex. the way he was shot, he was shot in the back. He was shot all over. They were actually two people that died that day.

They killed him and his friend outside of the apartment that day.

But fortunately, people that were around the apartment called the police immediately and they responded quickly enough where they were able to chase them down by car first and then by foot. One of the people were able to run away, but the other one that was caught, his name was Robert Rosier.

a former NFL player turned enforcer for Yahweh. Rozier confessed to taking part in at least seven murders on Yahweh's orders. on the stand, he described how Yahweh used fear and violence to control his followers.

Yo, this person that we're talking about, he is showing up to court in the whole getup. Okay. He is still wearing the turban and the dress and all of that. okay. I don't know how you're testifying about the fear and the violence that you committed and that was used on you, but you're still, why do you still have that on?

I guess this might be some kind of explanation, but he goes on to say, you didn't just follow orders, you followed them or you were next. I guess. Prosecutors had more than just Rosia's testimony now, right? Remember I told you guys they needed more. They had people come in to tell them things, but they needed more. They played recordings of Yahweh's sermon where he openly called for violence against the wicked, quote unquote, white devils.

The FBI had been watching Yahweh for years, building a case against him as they tracked his activities across multiple states.

Law enforcement agencies in Florida, Texas, and Georgia work together. They set up surveillance across all these states and pretty much watch them. They couldn't do too much watching though because as much as they was watching them, they was being watched too, okay? They were being watched while they were watching them and they knew that. So they only could do like drive-by pictures or something like that.

They couldn't do stakeouts or anything like that. So Yahweh himself was careful, often avoiding direct involvement in the crimes. His followers carried out everything. This made it easier for him to be completely off of all the evidence that was gathered.

The breakthrough in the case came when Robert Rozier, the man I told you guys about earlier, that was caught after killing Anthony Brown. So he was caught and eventually decides to cooperate with the authorities. Rozier confessed to participating in at least seven murders, all carried out on Yahweh's orders.

Rosie's testimony painted a vivid picture of life within the nation of Yahweh's totalitarian control over his followers. I have to say that word like that because I can never say that word, totalitarian.

Yahweh's arrest was a coordinated effort. In November 1990, he was taken into custody by federal agents at his headquarters in Miami at the Temple of Love. The raid involved a large number of officers to ensure no resistance from his loyal followers.

Meanwhile when this is all happening while they're arresting Hulan, they're also in other states other cities Arresting other key members of the nation of Yahweh because this was not just a one location type thing you guys this was a franchise at this point he had many many many locations and Also, if you want to look him up on YouTube, there's some of his sermons that are still on YouTube

So you can kind of listen to the top of stuff that he was talking about. That man, look, I don't know. I don't know how people are in cults. And I promise this is not victim, victim blaming or anything. It's just the way my brain works. I just, I would ask so many questions. That's why I'm not a Christian today. That's why I don't do beliefs and I don't do religion today because what are you talking? If you listen to his sermons,

It's literal brain fog. He is not making any sense whatsoever. He goes from calling himself Yahweh to say, no, no, don't think I'm calling myself Yahweh. Like it's straight up manipulation 101.

I watched one of his sermons where he's telling men that loving their wives is dumb, right? He's basically telling them like, what do you need to love your wife for? All you need to do is love Yahweh.

Right? And at the end of that sermon, he goes, me, he, he, he infers that Yahweh is him. And he starts talking about how men should love him. Right? That loyalty that we're talking about, right? Where he's able to send them out to go do his bidding while he's, you know, doing whatever he wants to do with their children and their wives. So these men are now supposed to love you.

and ignore what you're doing with their kids and their wives. That's all I hear. That's what I hear you saying. When I watch that, when I listen to that sermon, that is what I hear you saying. You're basically saying, don't love your children, don't love your wives because why would you need to do that, right? All you need to do is be loyal to me and love me. And that sounds very much Christian, doesn't it? It also sounds, it just sounds like religion in general. It sounds very cultish, right?

It sounds very much loyalty or die, but hey, you know, the evidence was overwhelming at this point.

anyway, core proceedings were extensive with prosecutors presenting not just Rozier's testimony, but also recordings of Yahweh's sermons, where he explicitly called for violence against the wicked, the white devils,

photos of crime scenes and testimonies from victims' families added emotional weight to the prosecution's case. The evidence was overwhelming, leading to Yahweh Ben Yahweh's conviction in 1992.

on conspiracy to commit murder and racketeering charges. He was sentenced to 18 years in federal prison. He was not charged for, you know, the actual murder themselves because he did not actually commit any of the murders. Everyone else did. So he only gets conspiracy to commit murder. And then we know what happens to everybody else.

Even in prison, Yahweh kept running his mouth, telling anyone who would listen that he was untouchable. Cancer can't touch me, he would say. He reportedly bragged to inmates still holding onto the image of himself as a divine being that was immune to human struggles. But life came at him hard, y'all. By 2007, Yahweh was battling advanced prostate cancer,

a fight even his so-called divinity could not save him from. He spent his final days in a hospital bed far from His followers, nowhere to be found, no one was coming.

For someone who had built his identity around being larger than life, his death was quiet and unremarkable. There was no grand displays, no loyal followers, no debuts, just the reality of mortality. And that is one thing that we cannot dispute.

You gon' die no matter what. No matter how divine you think your afterlife looks, you still gon' end up in the ground and the air and the water somewhere, okay? But while Yahweh's physical reign ended at that hospital room, the damage he left behind was far from over. Families were torn apart, lives were lost, and scars of his manipulation still lingered in the communities he touched. His legacy wasn't divine, but it was destructive.

All right, y'all. That is it. He didn't do as much time as I think he should have done. But, you know, that's the law, right? He didn't actually commit any of the murders himself. So they can't charge him with murder. I hate that he was released and then even able to kind of die peacefully. That low key itches me a little bit.

Right? Because you not only are preaching empowerment, you are using it as a means to destroy other people's lives. Because honestly, I'm not going to lie to you with the way things were going in that time. I don't blame black people for wanting to enact revenge of some sort. I don't blame black people for wanting to be behind someone.

that could bring them some kind of salvation. But please, don't ruin people's lives while you're trying to bring salvation. Because now your agenda has caused other people to now spend lives in prison, right? Now these people that are so brainwashed and loyal to you are now spending the rest of their lives in prison.

while you got to come out and relax for a little bit before you died, right? These people don't get that luxury. Their lives are ruined. Their lives are over. People that had to move from city to city to city, people that, you know, just followed you because they didn't have anywhere else to go. You prayed on that. You use empowerment. You use black empowerment to pray on that. And I'm sorry. I'm sorry. That part I can't get with.

That part I cannot get with. I can get with empowerment. I can get with trying to fight revolution, all that good stuff. But I can't get with the don't ruin lives because of your little agenda.

Anyway, Yahweh Ben Yahweh's story is a reminder of how dangerous blind faith can be. He wasn't just a preacher, he was a manipulator who used belief as a weapon for power, money, and control. Thank you guys so much for tuning in to heinous beliefs again. It is episode two. Y'all don't know how happy I am about this.

I'm so glad that I'm actually doing this and I hope you guys are enjoying these episodes. If this episode is a hit for you, subscribe, leave a five star review, share it with your people. I'll see y'all next Friday for another deep dive into the dark side of beliefs. Stay curious, stay safe. I'll catch you next time. Bye.